les  i(» 


ate  Grades 


.NV<>^''^ 


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%A 


PRINCETON,  N.  J. 


^^4. 


^ 


Purchased   by  the   Hamill   Missionary   Fund, 


ly^:-.;.  irimMat 


BV    2090    .T7    1906a 

Missionary  studies  for  the 
Sunday  school,  second 


} 


MISSIONARY    STUDIES 


FOR   THE 


SUNDAY   SCHOOL 

Second  Series 


GREAT    MISSIONARIES 
TO  THE  RED  MEN 

GREAT   MISSIONARIES    IN    THE 
DARK  CONTINENT 


Junior  and  Intermediate  Grades 


EDITED  BY     */ 

George  Harvey  Trull 

Assistant  Minister  Fifth  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church 
New  York  City 


Boards  of  Home  and  Foreign  Missions  of  the  Presbyterian  Church 
in  the  U.  S.  A. 

156  Fifth  Avenue,  New  York  City 


i 


Copyright,  1906. 
By  Gborgb  Harvby  Trull. 


Single  copies,  paper  covers,  twelve  cents,  postpaid. 

Ten  or  more  copies,  nine  cents  each,  postage  or  exptessage  extra. 

Orders  may  be  sent  to  the  Literature  Department  of  either  Board  of  Home  or 

Foreign  Missions,  156  Fifth  Avenue,  New  York  City. 


1lntrot)uctor^  IRotee* 

THE  fourfold  purpose  of  the  Sunday  School  is  Instruction, 
Salvation,  Edification  and  Training  for  Service.  In  none 
of  these  respects  can  the  Sunday  School  discharge  its  full 
duty,  unless  it  gives  to  its  members  an  intelligent,  compre- 
hensive knowledge  of  the  missionary  movements  of  the  whole 
world:  "No  information — no  inspiration."  The  greatest 
need  to-day  in  Sunday  School  work  is  this  very  thing,  and 
these  Studies  will  help  to  solve  the  problem.  To  see  the 
world  through  the  eyes  of  Jesus  Christ  will  put  life  into  any 
Church  or  Sunday  School  or  individual.  Some  v/ay  must  be 
found  in  all  of  our  Sunday  Schools  to  lay  the  foundation  for 
missionary  Studies.  We  are  rejoiced  that  there  is  more 
interest  in  this  matter  to-day  than  ever  in  the  past,  and  upon 
its  proper  solution  depends  the  success  of  the  Church  of  God 
at  home  and  abroad.  These  Studies  are  admirably  adapted 
to  the  purpose  for  which  they  are  intended,  and  should  be 
welcomed  heartily  by  all  Pastors,  Superintendents  and 
Sunday  School  Workers  everywhere. 

Marion  Lawrance, 
General  Secretary 
International  Sunday  School  Association. 

VTEXT  to  the  conversion  of  scholars  in  our  Sunday  Schools 
J-^  lies  their  development  in  Christian  service.  In  this  line 
there  is  no  instruction  more  important  than  that  of  the 
privilege  and  duty  of  sending  the  ' '  Glad  Tidings ' '  around 
the  world.     Of  course  this  means  missionary  work. 

The  following  Studies  have  been  carefully  prepared  with 
a  view  of  imparting  intelligence  and  enthusiasm  to  Sunday 
School  scholars  in  the  carrying  on  of  aggressive  missionary 
enterprise.  They  are  to  be  highly  commended  to  all  those 
teachers  who  truly  pray  "Thy  kingdom  come."     Prayer  and 


practice  should  coincide,  and  these  Studies  are  intended  to 
give  practical  outcome  to  the  prayer  which  we  all  so  often 
offer. 

I  can  truly  say  that  the  work  done  by  the  Rev.  G.  H. 
Trull  is  of  a  very  high  order.  The  themes  are  interestingly 
put,  and  the  questions  admirably  adapted  to  guide  both 
teacher  and  scholar  in  the  study  of  this  most  important 
topic.  Nothing  but  good  can  result  from  the  use  of  these 
Studies  as  supplementary  work  in  our  Sunday  Schools. 

A.    F.    SCHAUFFLER, 

Secretary  International  Lesson  Comrnittee. 

LAST  year  the  first  series  of  Home  Mission  Studies  for  the 
Sunday  School  were  issued  by  the  Home  and  Foreign 
Boards  of  Missions.  The  sale  of  the  books  was  of  such  a  kind 
that  we  rejoice  that  a  second  series  has  been  prepared  for  the 
second  year.  We  are  greatly  encouraged  to  believe  that 
Sunday  Schools  are  more  and  more  to  give  a  larger  place  to 
the  study  of  world-wide  missions.  Good  ammunition  has 
been  provided  in  these  Studies,  and  classes  will  do  well  to 
follow  the  leadings  as  they  are  taken  into  the  destitute  and 
waste  places  of  this  country  and  throughout  the  world. 

John  Willis  Baer, 
Secretary  Board  of  Home  Missions. 

*•'  O  EE  that  stately  tree  on  the  beach,  standing  alone  in  all 
^  its  grandeur?"  said  the  Captain  of  the  good  ship 
' '  Sekondi ' '  as  she  ploughed  through  the  quiet  waters  of  the 
South  Atlantic,  off  the  coast  of  Angola.  "It  was  at  that 
point,"  he  continued,  "that  David  Livingstone  stood  after 
his  long  journey  across  the  Dark  Continent,  and  looked  out 
westward  on  the  broad  expanse  of  waters." 

I  know  not  by  whom  this  tree  was  planted  or  how  much 
truth  there  is  in  the  story.  One  thing,  however,  is  certain. 
The  name  of  Livingstone  is  still  potent  everywhere  in  Africa. 
When  the  great  French  missionary,  Frangois  Coillard,  came 
to  the  confluence  of  the  Chobe  and  Zambesi  Rivers,  he  found 
that  the  principal  ford  was  guarded  by  three  Barotsi  Chiefs. 
No  one  could  cross  the  ferry  without  their  permission.  As 
soon,  however,  as  he  made  known  that  he  was  a  missionary 


and  a  friend  of  Livingstone,  all  difficulty  was  removed. 
Coillard  writes  that  ' '  Livingstone  has  left  the  name  of  mis- 
sionary in  such  high  honor,  that  my  character  as  such  was  a 

sufficient    passport In    Europe   people    admired    the 

intrepid  traveler,  but  one  must  come  here  where  he  has 
lived  to  admire  the  man.  If  some  travelers  have  engraved 
their  names  on  the  rocks  and  tree  trunks,  he  has  engraved 
his  in  the  very  hearts  of  the  heathen  population  of  Central 
Africa." 

But  the  influence  of  Livingstone  extends  far  beyond  the 
Continent  of  Africa.  The  young  men  and  women  of  the  past 
generation  were  fired  with  the  story  of  Henry  M.  Stanley's 
long  journey  in  search  of  the  great  missionary  in  the  heart 
of  Africa.  A  quarter  of  a  century  ago,  it  was  an  inspiration 
to  many  of  us  who  have  now  reached  mid-life  to  read  the 
narrative  of  the  intrepid  Stanley,  and  note  the  wondrous 
power  which  this  man  of  God  exercised  upon  him  as  they 
two  talked  over  the  woes  of  Africa.  Livingstone  did  not 
preach  to  Stanley.  No  church  service  was  held,  no  direct 
appeal  made,  but  the  steady  and  silent  influence  of  a  life  of 
such  heroic  mold  left  its  indelible  impress  upon  the  mind  and 
heart  and  soul  of  the  adventurous  newspaper  correspondent. 

In  the  rooms  of  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the 
Gospel  in  London  is  a  huge  log,  brought  by  one  of  their 
representatives  from  Chitambo,  near  Lake  Bang\\"eolo, 
Central  Africa.  This  log  is  a  part  of  the  mvula  tree  under 
which  the  faithful  servants  of  Livingstone  buried  his  heart, 
while  they  carried  his  mortal  body  to  the  coast,  whence  it 
was  sent  to  England  and  buried  in  Westminster  Abbey. 
Only  a  portion  of  a  tree,  but  how  sacred  to  thousands  of 
students  of  Missions,  because  underneath  its  shade  lay  the 
heart  of  Africa's  great  deliverer! 

No  higher  ideal  could  be  kept  before  the  scholars  of  our 
Sunday  Schools  to-day  than  the  lives  of  Livingstone  and 
Moffat,  Mackay  and  Crowther  and  the  other  illustrious 
names  in  Africa's  Missionary  Hall  of  Fame.  The  aim  of  this 
little  text-book  is  to  present  in  a  simple  way  the  story  of 
these  masterful  lives  consecrated  to  the  service  of  Christ 
in  Darkest  Africa. 


The  limited  time  at  the  disposal  of  the  Sunday  School 
teacher  easily  furnishes  an  excuse  to  neglect  mission  study. 
It  is  the  testimony,  however,  of  all  who  have  made  use  of 
such  Studies,  that  the  blessing  which  comes  more  than 
repays  the  extra  effort  put  forth  to  implant  in  the  heart  of 
the  scholar  even  a  faint  idea  of  the  royal  character  of  the  men 
of  God  who  devoted  their  lives  to  the  evangelization  of  the 
Dark  Continent. 

The  time  is  not  far  distant  when  a  complete  set  of  mission 
text-books  for  the  Sunday  School  will  be  the  necessary  equip- 
ment of  every  well-ordered  School.  We  trust  that  this  little 
volume  of  Mr.  Trull's  is  the  forerunner  of  a  long  series  which 
will  open  to  the  youth  of  the  Church  the  storied  treasures  of 
missionary  literature  and  life. 

A.  W.  Halsey, 
Secretary  Board  of  Foreign  Missions. 


preface* 

WITH  a  firm  belief  that  the  Sunday  School  is  the  place  for 
systematic  and  thorough  missionary  instruction,  the  Mis- 
sionary Committee  of  the  Fifth  Avenue  Presbyterian  Church, 
New  York,  for  the  third  successive  year,  has  prepared  a 
series  of  Mission  Studies  for  use  in  its  own  School.  As  the 
first  series,  issued  about  a  year  ago,  gained  a  wider  circulation 
through  its  publication,  the  following  Studies,  for  use  during 
the  current  year,  are  put  in  this  text-book  form,  with  the  hope 
that  they  may  be  of  service  to  other  Schools  who  desire  to 
give  Missions  a  place  in  the  Sunday  School  curriculum. 
They  are  issued  in  two  grades,  this  book  for  Juniors  and  Inter- 
mediates and  another  for  Seniors,  both  covering  the  same 
general  topics,  so  that  the  two  books  can  be  used  jointly  at 
the  same  time  in  the  different  grades  of  the  School.  Both 
Home  and  Foreign  Missions  are  treated,  as  the  one  is  incom- 
plete without  the  other. 

The  Studies  are  meant  to  be  used  as  Supplemental  Work, 
and  should  not  take  the  place  of  the  regular  Bible  lesson  of  the 
day.  Fifteen  minutes  should  be  devoted  to  them  in  the  class, 
a  copy  of  the  book  being  in  the  hands  of  each  scholar  during 
the  preceding  week  for  home  preparation.  This  is  essential 
if  good  results  are  to  be  obtained,  and  the  price  of  the  book 
has  been  made  so  low  that  this  is  possible.  By  following 
some  of  the  suggested  reading  noted  at  the  close  of  the  several 
Studies,  the  teachers  will  be  enabled  to  make  the  missionary 
period  bright,  crisp  and  attractive. 

The  Studies  can  be  used  on  consecutive  Sundays  or  once  a 
month,  as  is  deemed  best  by  each  Sch  ol.  If  monthly,  it  is 
suggested  that  the  closing  exercises  of  the  School  should  be 
devoted  to  the  missionary  topic  of  the  day,  thus  deepening 
still  more  the  impressions  made  in  the  classes.  Especial 
attention  is  called  to  the  fact  that  these   Studies  are  not 


denominational  in  any  sense,  hence  they  are  adapted  for  use 
in  any  School. 

With  the  prayer  that  they  may  arouse  and  quicken  an 
interest  in  the  great  cause  of  Missions,  they  are  herewith 
sent  forth. 

{May  L.  Moorhead, 
Ruth  G.  Winant. 
Marie  H.  Winkhaus, 
.  George  H.  Trull,  Supt. 

New  York,  February  i,  1906. 


y 


Contente* 


Study  I. 
John  Eliot ^y:'\ 1 1 

BY  GEORGE  H.  TRULL. 

>./                            Study  II. 
David   Brainerd ^^/\ 19 

BY  GEORGE  H.  TRULL. 


Study  III 
Marcus  Whitman v/^ ^^ 

BY  MARIE  H.  WINKHAUS. 

v^                  Study  IV. 
Egerton  R   Young ^.^,X : 30 

BY  MARIE  H.  WINKHAUS* 

Study  V. 
The  Land  of  Africa i>^- 35 

BY  RUTH  G.  WINANT. 

^                       Study  VI. 
Robert    Moffat ■a-^'- 41 

BY  MAY  L.  MOORHEAD. 

.^           Study  VII. 
Samuel  Adjai  Crowther .......  „^y^. 48 

BY  RUTH  G.  WINANT. 

,/^                        Study  VIII. 
■  David  Livingstone %j/^- 5^ 

BY  GEORGE  H.  TRULL. 

v^             Study  IX. 
Alexander  M.  Mackay v^ *^4 

by  GEORGE  H.  TRULL. 

Study  X. 
Africa  To-day yy/^. 72 

BY  RUTH  G.  WINANT. 


STUDY  I. 

GREAT  MISSIONARIES  TO  THE  RED  MEN. 

3obn  jEItot, 

1604— 1690. 

Indians  and  Their  Traits. 

Long  before  our  forefathers  came  to  this  country, 
there  lived  here  men  of  quite  a  different  race.  They 
were  not  white,  but  of  a  dark  bronze  color,  with  high 
cheek-bones  and  straight  hair  as  black  as  a  raven. 
By  Columbus,  who  discovered  America,  they  were 
called  Indians  because  when  he  landed  here  he  thought 
that  he  had  reached  India. 

Their  traits  of  bravery,  cunning  and  endurance  are 
too  well  known  to  need  comment,  and  in  some  cases 
they  have  proved  themselves  also  treacherous  and 
revengeful.  One  marked  trait  is  their  keenness  of 
observation. 

An  Indian  left  his  lodge  for  several  days.  On  his 
return,  some  deer  meat  which  he  had  left  hanging  on 
a  tree  was  gone.  Instead  of  asking  questions  of  his 
neighbors  at  first,  he  just  used  his  eyes  and  then,  after 
a  time,  went  to  a  wigwam  and  asked :  ' '  Did  you  see 
a  little  old  white  man  with  a  short  gun?"  "Did  he 
have  a  small  dog  with  a  short  tail?"  ' '  Yes,"  was  the 
reply,  "he  and  his  dog  took  the  trail  going  south." 

II 


The  Indian  followed  the  trail,  and  in  a  few  days 
returned  with  the  deer  meat  and  the  dog.  Some 
white  men,  having  heard  of  the  incident,  went  to  the 
Indian  and  asked:  "How  did  you  know  a  white 
man  took  your  meat  ?"  ' '  White  man  turns  toes  out ; 
Indian  put  foot  so,  one  behind  the  other,  walk 
straight."  "How  did  you  know  he  was  little  and 
old.?"  "He  put  a  pile  of  stones  by  deer-meat  tree; 
cannot  reach,  he  little.  He  take  short  steps;  he  old. 
He  stick  gun  on  ground  against  tree.  Gun  muzzle 
make  mark  a  little  way  from  ground.  Short  gun." 
"Well,  how  did  you  know  he  had  a  little  dog  with  a 
short  tail?"  "Dog  sit  in  the  sand,  watch  man  get 
meat.  Dog  leave  mark  where  he  sit  down.  Indian 
can  see  with  two  eyes." 

Origin. 

We  do  not  know  just  where  the  Red  Men  came 
from  nor  how  they  reached  America.  Many  wise 
men  have  puzzled  over  the  question.  The  most  prob- 
able view  is  that  they  came  from  Northeast  Asia, 
and  crossed  by  way  of  the  Aleutian  Islands  in  the 
North  Pacific  Ocean  to  what  is  now  Alaska.  We  are 
not  so  much  concerned  about  how  they  got  here,  as 
how  they  lived  and  acted  afterwards. 

Customs  and  Beliefs. 

They  did  not  live  in  towns,  such  as  white  men  are 
used  to,  but  led  a  roving  life  in  the  forest,  going  from 
place  to  place.  Their  houses  were  not  like  ours,  but 
built  of  bark,  and  called  wigwams.  They  had  no 
churches,  no  schools,  not  even  a  book  of  any  kind, 
and  not  an  Indian  could  read  or  write.     They  knew 

12 


nothing  about  Jesus,  but  believed  in  the  Great  Good 
Spirit  who  dwelt  in  the  heavens  towards  the  setting 
sun.  There  was  an  Evil  Spirit  also  who  could  harm 
them  and  they  needed  to  look  out  for  him.  They 
believed,  too,  that  there  were  lesser  spirits  everywhere : 
in  the  wind,  the  lake,  the  river,  the  storm,  the  trees, 
etc.  As  they  had  no  church,  you  would  not  expect 
them  to  have  any  minister,  and  surely  he  was  not 
such  a  man  as  we  believe  a  minister  should  be.  The 
only  minister  they  had  was  what  they  called  a  pow- 
wow. He  was  the  priest,  the  doctor  and  the  con- 
jurer, all  in  one.  The  pow-wows  had  great  influence 
over  the  other  Indians,  as  the  latter  believed  they 
were  in  league  with  the  unseen  spirits  and  could  do 
wonderful  things,  and  work  them  great  harm  if  they 
wanted  to.  The  Indians  did  not  call  their  pow-wow 
a  doctor,  but  medicine  man.  You  would  think  him 
a  strange  kind  of  doctor,  for  when  you  are  sick  you 
are  made  to  keep  very  quiet  and  everybody  in  the 
house  tries  not  to  make  any  noise,  and  the  wise  doctor 
tells  your  parents  what  to  do  for  you.  But  if  you 
had  been  a  little  Indian  girl  or  boy  a  couple  of  hun- 
dred of  years  ago,  and  had  gotten  sick,  the  pow-wow 
or  medicine  man  would  have  been  called  in  to  see 
you,  and  he  would  have  said  that  an  Evil  Spirit  made 
you  sick.  He  would  probably  have  ordered  a  very 
bad  dose,  and  then  making  himself  look  as  horrible  as 
possible,  he  would  have  danced  and  jumped  around 
you,  beating  on  a  drum  to  scare  the  Evil  Spirit  away. 
Many  of  the  Indians  were  very  warlike  and  cruel, 
and  a  man's  worth  was  judged  by  his  fighting  ability. 
The  larger  the  number  of  his  enemies'  scalps  that  he 
had,  the  greater  warrior  was  he  thought  to  be.     The 

13 


men  did  no  work  in  the  fields,  this  being  left  for  the 
women;  but  they  hunted  and  fished  in  the  great 
forests. 

It  was  such  a  people  as  this  that  the  first  English 
settlers  found  when  they  landed  on  the  shores  of 
North  America.  Their  need  of  the  Gospel,  and  all 
the  blessings  that  came  with  it,  was  very  great.  The 
English  settlers  soon  saw  this,  and  some  of  them  tried 
to  help  the  Red  Men  of  the  forest.  But  not  very 
much  was  done  until  a  young  man  from  England  by 
the  name  of  John  Eliot  arrived  in  Boston.  He  was  a 
minister,  and  just  twenty-seven  years  old  when  he 
reached  America  in  1631.  He  was  born  in  a  little 
town  not  far  from  London  in  1604.  At  that  time, 
and  for  a  number  of  years  afterwards,  all  persons  who 
did  not  worship  God  in  just  the  way  that  the  Govern- 
ment directed  were  very  harshly  treated.  Great 
numbers  of  people  who  were  called  Puritans,  because 
of  their  purity  of  life  and  the  plainness  of  their  form 
of  worship,  went  to  America.     Eliot  was  one  of  these. 

Eliot  Arrives  in  Boston. 

After  he  had  been  a  year  in  Boston,  he  went  to  live 
in  a  small  place  near  by  called  Roxbury.  He  be- 
came the  pastor  of  the  church  there,  and  served  his 
people  for  nearly  sixty  years  as  their  minister.  Eliot 
soon  saw  that  not  only  the  white  people  in  Rox- 
bury needed  him,  but  the  Red  Men  in  the  forest  as 
well.  There  were  hundreds  of  them  near  by,  and  he 
used  to  visit  them  in  their  wigwams.  At  first  he 
could  not  speak  their  language  at  all,  but  he  brought 
one  of  the  Indians  into  his  own  home  to  live,  and  by 

14 


noting  carefully  every  word  he   said    he  gradually 
learned  to  talk  with  him. 

First  Sermon  to  the  Indians. 

It  was  then  arranged  that  he  should  visit  one  of  the 
Indian  settlements  and  preach  there.  He  preached 
to  the  natives  a  sermon  which  was  the  first  that  any 
North  American  Indians  had  ever  heard  in  their  own 
tongue  from  a  Protestant  minister.  The  sermon 
lasted  for  an  hour  and  a  quarter,  but  the  Indians 
did  not  get  tired,  for  after  it  they  spent  nearly  two 
hours  longer  asking  questions.  This  was  the  beginning 
of  a  work  among  the  Indians  that  continued  until 
Eliot's  death.  As  time  went  on,  he  became  more  and 
more  interested  in  them.  He  tried  to  help  them  not 
only  by  telling  them  about  God,  but  by  teaching  them 
how  to  live  in  a  civilized  way. 

Indian  Settlements. 

Settlements  of  "Praying  Indians,"  those  who 
became  Christians,  were  formed.  Streets  were  laid 
out,  houses  were  built,  and  produce  was  raised. 
Laws  were  made  based  on  the  teachings  of  the  Bible. 
Schools  were  established,  and  much  was  done  to  im- 
prove the  condition  of  the  Red  Men.  All  went  well 
until  war  broke  out  betv/een  hostile  Indians,  those 
who  had  never  become  Christians,  and  the  white 
settlers.  The  '  *  Praying  Indians"  were  persecuted  by 
the  other  Indians,  for  they  were  said  because  of  their 
Christianity  to  favor  the  white  men;  and  they  v/ere 
treated  with  suspicion  by  the  English  who  feared  that 
any  moment  they  might  join  the  hostile  Indians. 
Between  the  two  they  suffered  much,  but,  with  few 

^5 


exceptions,  they  took  no  part  in  the  struggle.  Their 
settlements  were  however  broken  up,  and  they  never 
fully  recovered  from  their  losses  then  sustained. 

Translations. 

One  of  the  first  things  that  Eliot  did  after  he  had 
learned  the  Indian  language  was  to  translate  into  it 
the  Lord's  Prayer,  the  Ten  Commandments,  and 
some  Scripture  verses.  He  had  to  note  down  in 
English  letters  the  sounds  of  the  different  words,  and 
thus  give  to  the  Indians  what  they  did  not  have  before, 
a  written  language.  Besides  translating  a  number  of 
books  he  prepared  an  Indian  grammar,  and  in  it 
wrote  what  he  himself  had  found  to  be  true,  that 
* '  Prayer  and  pains  through  faith  in  Jesus  Christ  will 
do  anything." 

His  greatest  work  for  the  Red  Man  was  the  trans- 
lation of  the  Bible.  Eliot  felt  this  to  be  absolutely 
necessary  if  the  converts  were  to  become  strong 
Christians.  It  was  a  tremendous  task  that  he  had 
before  him,  and  one  in  which  he  had  but  little  help 
from  others.  It  took  years  to  do  it,  too,  with  all  his 
other  duties;  but  this  hero  missionary  kept  steadily 
on  until  he  had  finished  the  New  Testament  in  1661, 
and  the  Old  Testament  in  1663.  It  was  printed  at 
Cambridge,  not  far  from  Harvard  College,  and  was 
the  very  first  Bible  that  ivas  ever  printed  in  America. 

Eliot  labored  so  faithfully  among  the  Indians, 
always  proving  himself  their  friend,  that  many  of 
them  were  converted.  One  noted  Chief,  who  at  first 
refused  to  become  a  Christian,  at  last  was  won,  and 
spoke  to  Mr.  EHot  as  follows: 

* '  I  acknowledge  that  I  have  been  used  all  my  life 

16 


to  pass  up  and  down  in  an  old  canoe;  and  now  you 
wish  me  to  make  a  change,  to  leave  my  old  canoe 
and  embark  in  a  new  one,  to  which  I  have  been  un- 
willing; but  now  I  give  up  myself  to  your  advice,  enter 
into  a  new  canoe,  and  do  engage  to  pray  to  God  here- 
after." 

Eliot's  Character. 

While  Eliot  is  best  known  because  of  his  work 
among  the  Indians,  we  must  not  forget  that  all  the 
time  he  was  helping  the  men  of  the  forest  he  was 
pastor  of  the  church  at  Roxbury.  He  was  faithful 
to  all  his  duties  there,  too,  and  was  loved  and  respected 
by  all  his  people.  He  had  no  ambition  but  to  please 
God  and  help  his  fellow-men.  He  did  not  spare  his 
time  or  strength  if  he  might  be  of  service  to  others. 
He  was  especially  noted  for  his  generous  nature. 
Though  his  salary  was  small,  he  would  often  give  a 
large  part  of  it  to  the  poor.  The  Treasurer  of  the 
church,  knowing  this,  gave  him  his  month's  salary  one 
day  tied  up  with  many  knots  in  a  handkerchief,  to 
keep  him  from  getting  it  out  and  giving  the  most  of  it 
away  before  he  got  liome.  But  on  the  way  Eliot 
stopped  in  to  see  a  poor  family.  As  he  listened  to 
their  story  of  need,  he  commenced  to  fumble  at  his 
handkerchief  to  undo  the  knots.  But  they  were  tied 
so  well  that  he  could  not  loosen  them.  So  handing 
handkerchief  and  all  to  the  mother,  he  told  her  to 
take  it,  as  the  Lord  must  surely  have  meant  for  her 
to  have  it  all,  since  he  could  not  untie  the  knots. 

Eliot  lived  to  be  eighty-six  years  of  age,  and  then 
God  called  him  home  to  the  higher  service  of  Heaven. 
He  had  been  faithful  until  death,  and  through  him 

17 


hundreds  who  would  otherwise  have  never  known  of 
God  and  of  Jesus  Christ  were  led  out  of  the  darkness 
of  superstition  and  heathenism  into  the  glorious  light 
of  the  Gospel. 

Questions. 

1.  By  whom  were  the  Red  Men  called  Indians,  and 

why? 

2.  Describe  some  Indian  traits. 

3.  If  you  had  been  an  Indian  300  years  ago,  what 

would  probably  have  been  your  manner  of  life  ? 

4.  Why  did  John  Eliot  come  to  America,  and  when? 

5 .  What  do  you  think  was  the  greatest  thing  he  ever 

did  for  the  Indians? 

6.  What  incident  proves  his  generosity? 

Interesting  Books  for  Scholars. 

"Wigwam  Stories,"  by  Miss  M.  C.  Judd. 
"Indian   Boyhood,"   by    Chas.   Eastman^   a   Native 
Indian. 

"  Indian  Story  and  Song,"  by  Miss  Alice  Fletcher. 
"The  Legends  of  the  Iroquois,"  by  W.  W.  Canfield. 

Books  for  Teachers  before  Teaching  this  Study. 

"  Pioneer  Missionaries  of  the  Church,"  Chapter  3, 
Creegan. 

"  Protestant  Missions,"  Chapter  4,  A.  C.  Thompson. 


STUDY  II. 

GREAT  MISSIONARIES  TO  THE  RED  MEN. 

Davib  Brainert), 

1718-1747. 

Birth  and  Conversion, 

We  have  just  studied  about  a  great  missionary  who 
labored  for  more  than  fifty  years.  We  now  turn  to 
one  whose  service  was  less  than  five.  John  Eliot, 
the  Apostle  to  the  Indians,  died  at  eighty-six ;  David 
Brainerd,  no  less  an  Apostle  to  the  same  people,  died 
at  twenty-nine. 

Brainerd  was  born  in  the  little  town  of  Haddam, 
Connecticut,  on  April  20th,  17 18.  He  was  not  a 
very  strong  boy,  and  could  not  do  what  many  another 
would,  full  of  health  and  good  spirits.  He  was  strong  in 
character  though  and  grew  up  with  a  desire  to  be  a  true 
and  noble  man.  His  grandfather  and  great-grandfather 
had  been  ministers,  and  David  sometimes  thought 
that  when  he  became  a  man  he  would  like  to  be  a 
minister  too.  He  did  not  seem  to  understand  very 
clearly  what  it  meant  to  be  a  Christian,  and  many 
a  battle  did  he  fight  with  himself,  at  one  time  hoping 
that  by  the  good  life  he  was  trying  to  lead  he  might 
be  a  Christian,  and  at  other  times  being  in  great 
trouble  because  he  felt  he  was  not  what  God  wanted 

19 


him  to  be.  It  was  really  not  until  he  was  twenty- 
one  that  the  full  light  of  the  good  news  of  salvation 
seemed  to  dawn  on  him,  and  he  saw  now  what  had 
not  been  plain  before — that  God  saved  him  not  be- 
cause of  any  good  works  of  his,  but  because  of  love 
and  mercy  and  because  Jesus  Christ  had  died  for  him. 
When  Brainerd  fully  understood  this,  he  was  just  as 
happy  as  he  could  be.  This  happiness  he  wanted  to 
share  with  others  who  did  not  know  of  his  friend  and 
Saviour,  Jesus  Christ.  He  now  made  up  his  mind  to 
enter  the  ministry,  and  went  to  Yale  College  where  he 
studied  very  hard.  He  was  very  much  afraid  that 
he  would  find  it  difficult  to  be  a  Christian  there  with 
so  many  temptations,  and  so  much  studying  to  do 
that  he  might  not  get  all  the  time  that  he. would  like 
for  prayer  and  the  study  of  his  Bible.  But  he  found 
that  God  helped  him  and  used  him  as  a  Christian 
while  he  was  in  college.  As  time  went  on,  he  felt  very 
deeply  the  needs  of  the  heathen  who  had  never  heard 
of  Christ,  and  longed  that  he  might  go  some  day  to 
tell  them.  He  did  not  know  then  just  what  God  had 
in  store  for  him,  but  he  was  ready  to  do  anything  or  to 
go  anywhere  when  the  time  should  come. 

Appointment  as  a  Missionary. 

In  those  early  days  in  New  England,  and  in  the 
other  Colonies,  there  were  many  Indians.  Some  of 
the  ministers  living  in  N.ew  York,  New  Jersey,  Dela- 
ware and  Pennsylvania,  seeing  how  great  was  the 
need  of  these  poor  heathen  people,  sent  word  to  a 
missionary  society  in  Scotland  for  some  missionaries. 
The  plea  was  so  strong  that  the  Society  decided  to 
send  two,  and  one  of  them  that  they  appointed  was 

20 


David  Brainerd.  He  was  twenty-four  years  old  when 
he  received  word  of  the  work  that  the  Society  wanted 
him  to  do,  and  he  was  very  glad  to  become  a  mission- 
ary to  the  Red  Men. 

Labors  among  the  Indians. 

He  began  his  work  in  a  place  called  Kaunaumeek, 
not  far  from  Albany.  It  was  fifteen  miles  awa}^  from 
the  nearest  English  settlers,  and  all  that  distance 
Brainerd  had  either  to  go  or  to  send  for  all  the  bread 
he  ate.  He  would  have  to  get  so  much  at  a  time 
that  sometimes  it  would  get  sour  and  mouldy  before 
he  could  eat  it  all.  At  other  times  he  would  not 
have  a  bit.  His  home  was  just  a  rude  hut  which  he 
built  right  out  in  the  forest.  He  worked  with  these 
Indians  for  a  year,  and  then,  as  they  moved  to  an- 
other place  where  they  could  have  Christian  teaching, 
he  made  up  his  mind  to  go  to  other  Indians  that 
needed  him  more.  These  he  found  in  Pennsylvania 
on  the  Delaware  river,  and  others  in  New  Jersey. 

At  first  it  was  very  hard  to  do  much  for  them.  A 
few  seemed  interested  in  what  he  had  to  say,  but  a 
good  many  made  light  of  it  or  would  not  listen.  This 
made  Brainerd  very  sad,  and  sometimes  he  would  go 
out  into  the  thick  forest  and  spend  a  whole  night  in 
prayer  to  God  for  these  Indians  who  seemed  so  de- 
graded and  so  hard  to  reach.  He  braved  many  dan- 
gers, for  traveling  in  those  days  was  not  easy.  One 
time  he  had  a  very  narrow  escape  from  death  by  his 
horse  stumbling  and  breaking  his  leg  in  a  dangerous 
place.  He  also  met  many  Indians  who  threatened 
to  kill  him,  because  they  did  not  like  his  teachings, 
but  Brainerd  seemed  to  know  nc  fear.     He  suffered 

21 


all  kinds  of  hardships,  living  right  among  the  degraded 
savages,  but  he  did  not  complain.  The  only  thing 
that  worried  him  was  the  sin  of  the  Indians  and  their 
refusal  to  accept  the  Gospel.  One  tribe  that  he  met 
on  the  Susquehanna  river  seemed  to  be  the  lowest 
and  most  degraded  that  he  had  ever  seen.  Half  a 
dozen  of  their  conjurers  one  Sunday  morning  went 
through  all  kinds  of  queer  antics  for  several  hours, 
at  times  singing  or  howling,  stroking  their  faces,  then 
spurting  water  from  their  mouths  as  fine  as  mist, 
sometimes  wagging  their  heads  from  side  to  side.  By 
all  these  strange  actions  they  hoped  to  drive  away  a 
certain  sickness  that  was  in  their  midst. 

Closing  Days. 

But  there  were  other  Indians  with  whom  Brainerd 
had  great  success.  In  answer  to  his  earnest  prayers 
and  faithful  work  at  Crosswicks,  N.  J.,  there  was  a 
great  revival.  Men,  women  and  children  were  led 
to  see  what  great  sinners  they  were  and  how  much 
they  needed  God's  forgiveness.  Brainerd  says  that 
he  had  never  seen  so  wonderful  a  sight.  It  brought 
to  him  great  joy.  He  labored  with  all  his  strength 
and  might,  often  getting  but  little  and  very  poor  food. 
He  was  often  cold  and  hungry,  and  so  gradually  his 
health  began  to  fail.  He  planned  to  visit  New  Eng- 
land, and  in  the  spring  of  1747  he  arrived  in  Boston. 
Here  he  was  taken  very  ill,  and  his  friends  thought 
he  could  not  live.  But  he  grew  better  and  was  able 
to  go  to  Northampton,  to  the  home  of  Rev.  Jonathan 
Edwards.  The  change  for  the  better  did  not  last 
long,  however,  for  soon  he  became  much  worse,  and 
he  knew,  as  well  as  his  friends,  that  he  could  not  get 

22 


well.  In  those  last  days  of  his  life  he  was  very  happy 
because  of  what  God  had  done  through  him  to  help 
the  Indians,  and  because,  even  though  sick,  he  could 
tell  all  who  came  to  see  him  of  God's  loving  care  and 
bid  them  give  their  lives  to  His  service.  On  the  gth 
of  October,  1747,  Brainerd  heard  his  Master's  voice 
to  come  up  higher,  and  he  passed  from  earth  to 
Heaven.  Short  indeed  had  been  his  life,  but  one  full 
of  sacrifice  and  zeal  to  help  others — a  life  of  prayer, 
purity  and  power. 

Questions. 

1.  Tell  of  Brainerd's  early  life  and  conversion. 

2.  When    was    he    appointed    a    missionary    to    the 

Indians,  and  how   long   did   he   labor   among 
them? 

3.  If  you  had  lived  with  Brainerd,  what  hardships 

would  you  have  had  to  endure.^ 

4.  Why  did  he  so  uncomplainingly  bear  them? 

5.  Was  he  successful  in  his  missionary  work? 

Book  for  Scholars. 
"  Life  of  Brainerd,"  by  Jesse  Page. 

Books  for  Teachers  before  Teaching  this  Study. 

"  Pioneer  Missionaries  of  the  Church,"  by  Creegan, 
Chapter  4. 

"  Protestant  Missions,"  by  Thompson,  Chapter  6. 
"Brainerd's  Memoirs,"  by  Sherwood. 


23 


STUDY  III. 
GREAT  MISSIONARIES  TO  THE  RED  MEN. 

flDarcu6  Mbitman, 

1802-1847. 

Birth  and  Boyhood. 

About  one  hundred  years  ago,  in  1802,  a  little  boy 
was  born  in  the  State  of  New  York  whose  name  was 
Marcus  Whitman.  His  mother  and  father  were  very 
poor,  and  when  he  was  only  eight  3^ears  old  his  father 
died.  Marcus  therefore  did  all  he  could  to  help  his 
mother.  Often  he  would  stay  at  home  and  work 
around  the  house  or  in  the  fields  when  he  wanted  to 
go  out  and  run  through  the  woods,  for  he  was  always 
fond  of  adventure.  But  in  the  evening,  when  the 
work  was  over  and  it  was  too  dark  to  go  out  and  play, 
he  loved  to  read,  and  one  of  his  favorite  books  was  the 
Bible.  When  he  grew  up  he  became  a  doctor,  and 
for  several  years  he  worked  among  the  sick.  But  one 
day  a  minister,  whose  name  was  Dr.  Parker,  asked 
Whitman  whether  he  did  not  want  to  go  to  the  West 
with  him  to  help  the  poof  Indians  there  who  did  not 
know  anything  about  Jesus,  and  were  anxious  to 
learn  about  Him  and  about  "The  Book  of  Heaven," 
as  they  called  our  Bible.  These  Indians  lived  in 
Oregon,  which  at  that  time  was  a  very  large  region, 
much  larger  than  the  State  which  bears  that  name 

24 


now.     At  that  time,  too,  it  had  not  yet  been  decided 
whether  it  belonged  to  England  or  America. 

The  Trip  to  Oregon. 
Do  you  know  where  Oregon  is?     If  you  look  at  a 
map  you  will  see  it  is  far  off  in  the  Northwest,  be- 
yond the  Rocky  Mountains  and  on  the  shores  of  the 
Pacific  Ocean.  '    Nowadays  it  is  very  easy  to  cross 
these  great  mountains,  for  we  just  get  into  a  tram 
and  are  taken  where  we  want  to  go.     But  at  that 
time  no  one'  had  ever  gotten  even  a  wagon  across 
them,  for  there  were  no  roads  at  all,  and  it  was  hard 
to  get  through  even  on  horseback.     So  you  see  Dr. 
Parker  was  asking  Dr.  Whitman  to  do  not  a  very  easy 
thing.     It  meant  a  journey  of  about  three  thousand 
miles,    and   would   take    about    four    months.     But 
Whitman  was  ready  to  do  even  this  for  his  God  and 
for  his  country.     So  he  set  out  with  Dr.  Parker,  and 
after  a  long,  hard  journey   they  found  a  good  place 
for  a  mission  station  right  among  the  Indians,  way 
out  in  the  Northwest.     Because  of  the  need,  Whit- 
man came  right  back  again  to  look  for  another  mis- 
sionary, and  soon  found  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Spaulding,  who 
were  willing  to  go  West  with  him  and  spend  their  lives 
teaching  the  Indians.     They  had  just  been  married, 
and  Whitman  too  just  at  this  time  was  also  married, 
so  they  all  went  back  to  Oregon  together. 

For  seven  years  Whitman  worked  among  the 
Indians,  teaching  them  about  Jesus,  showing  them 
how  to  live  as  Jesus  wants  us  to  live,  and  teachmg 
them  to  read  the  Bible.  But  he  also  taught  them 
how  to  build  nice  homes,  how  to  plant  and  to  raise 
their   own  wheat   and  vegetables.     He   also   helped 

25 


them  when  they  were  sick,  and  many  learned  to  love 
God  from  what  Whitman  said  and  did. 

Whitman  now  began  to  notice  that  the  English 
traders  were  anxious  to  get  possession  of  Oregon, 
and  that  unless  Americans  should  prevent  it,  this 
great  Northwestern  country  on  the  borders  of  Canada 
would  be  lost  to  the  United  States.  One  trouble 
was  that  the  people  of  the  United  States  did  not 
know  what  a  wonderfully  rich  and  beautiful  region 
it  was.  For  a  while  Whitman  did  not  say  anything, 
but  just  kept  thinking  what  could  be  done  to  make 
Oregon  a  part  of  the  United  States. 

Whitman's  Ride. 

When  he  heard  that  it  was  soon  to  become  a  part 
of  England's  territory,  he  made  up  his  mind  that  he 
must  talk  to  the  President,  just  as  soon  as  possible, 
and  tell  him  all  about  Oregon,  for  he  was  sure  that 
if  the  President  knew  what  a  fine  country  it  was,  he 
would  want  to  make  it  American  if  he  could.  When 
we  say  that  he  wanted  to  talk  to  the  President,  it 
sounds  as  if  it  would  be  quite  easy,  for  now  people 
who  are  thousands  of  miles  away  can  be  reached  by 
train,  telegraph  or  even  telephone;  but  Whitman  had 
to  ride  all  the  way  from  Oregon  to  Washington  on  horse- 
hack.  His  friends  did  not  want  him  to  go  because  it 
was  the  beginning  of  winter  and  very  cold,  but 
Whitman  would  not  stay  home.  So  off  he  went, 
riding  at  times  through  snow-storms  that  blinded 
him  so  that  he  lost  his  way,  meeting  Indians  and  wild 
beasts  now  and  then,  but  always  ready  to  go  ahead  as 
long  as  it  was  for  God  and  for  his  country.  At  last 
he  got  to  Washington,  but  his  work  was  not  nearly 

26 


over  yet,  for  now  no  one  would  believe  that  Oregon 
was  worth  while  taking  any  trouble  about.  After 
listening  to  him  for  a  long  while,  the  President  finally 
said  that  if  Whitman  could  get  any  wagons  across  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  this  would  show  that  Oregon  could 
be  reached  by  settlers  from  the  East,  and  that  then 
he  would  do  his  best  to  keep  it  for  America. 

Oregon  Saved  for  the  United  States. 

So  Whitman  made  up  his  mind  that  he  must  prove 
to  the  President  that  people  could  cross  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  and  decided  that  he  himself  would  be  their 
guide.  A  good  many  people  had  heard  of  this  West- 
ern country,  and  many  of  them  would  have  gone 
there  before  this,  to  make  new  homes  for  themselves 
and  their  families;  but  they  knew  that  it  was  a  long, 
hard  journey,  and  were  afraid  to  go  for  fear  of  not 
getting  there  in  safety.  Whitman  promised  to  guide 
them  there,  and  only  two  months  after  he  saw  the 
President  he  had  gathered  a  large  party  of  nearly  one 
thousand  persons  and  at  their  head  set  out  for  the 
West.  After  many  weeks  of  weary  traveling  the 
long  journey  was  ended,  and  the  settlers  reached  the 
beautiful  country  where  they  were  now  to  have  their 
homes.  A  form  of  government  had  been  set  up  and 
they  elected  a  Governor.  When  the  English  saw  how 
few  they  were  in  number,  compared  to  the  Americans, 
they  gave  up  the  attempt  to  seize  Oregon,  and  it  was 
thus  saved  to  the  United  States  through  the  wonder- 
ful bravery  of  Marcus  Whitman. 

Opposition  and  Death. 
They  were  very  angry,  however,  with  the  Americans' 
success,    and   did   all  that  they  could  to  poison  the 

27 


minds  of  the  Indians  against  the  missionaries.  Though 
the  Red  Men  had  received  nothing  but  kindness  from 
Whitman  and  his  friends,  through  the  influence  of 
the  EngUsh  they  began  to  distrust  and  to  hate  him. 
He  saw  that  they  were  making  plans  to  do  him  harm, 
but  he  could  not  prevent  them;  he  just  kept  on  help- 
ing them  when  they  were  sick,  and  trying  in  every  way 
to  show  his  love  for  them.  But  they  even  thought 
that  he  was  attempting  to  poison  them  v/ith  his 
medicines,  and  so  in  1847  they  rose  up  and  killed  or 
took  prisoners  all  the  missionaries  that  they  could — 
killed  all  those  noble  men  and  women  who  had  given 
up  everything  in  life  for  them.  Dr.  Whitman  was 
the  first  to  die,  but  the  work  that  he  began  way  out  in 
that  Northwest  country  is  still  growing,  and  every 
true  American  who  knows  about  him  will  feel  proud 
of  him  for  making  Oregon  an  American  and,  above  all, 
a  Christian  possession. 

Questions. 

1.  Where  is  Oregon? 

2.  Who  wanted  to  know  about  the  "Book  of  Heaven"? 

3.  Vv^hat  did  Dr.  Whitman  teach  the  Indians? 

4.  Why  did  he  take  his  long  winter  ride  to  Washing- 

ton? 

5.  Who  opposed  him  after  his  return  and  why? 

6.  Does  not  our  whole  country  owe  Whitman  a  debt 

of  gratitude  for  saving  Oregon? 

7.  How  can  we  best  show  this  gratitude? 

Books. 
"The  Story  of  Marcus  Whitman,"  by  Craighead. 
"How  Marcus  Whitman  Saved  Oregon,"  by  Nixon. 

28 


"Marcus  Whitman  and  the  Early  Days  of  Oregon," 
by  Wm.  Mowry. 

"The  Oregon  Trail,"  by  Parkman. 

"Whitman's  Ride,"  by  Nixon. 

"Great  Missionaries  of  the  Church,"  by  Creegon, 
Chap.  21. 


29 


STUDY  IV. 

GREAT  MISSIONARIES  TO  THE  RED  MEN. 

jeeerton  1R.  IPoung, 

1840- 

So  far  we  have  studied  about  the  Indians  of  long 
ago,  the  Red  Men  who  were  on  the  eastern  shores  of 
this  great  country  when  the  Pilgrims  and  Puritans 
landed,  and  also  those  who  were  in  the  Oregon  country 
in  the  days  of  Whitman.  But  to-day  we  are  to  study 
about  a  missionary  who  has  more  recently  labored 
among  these  men  of  the  forest  in  the  great  Northwest. 
He  has  lived  with  them  for  years,  he  has  gone  with 
them  on  their  hunting  and  fishing  trips,  he  has  trav- 
eled long  distances  with  them  in  canoes  in  summer,  and 
dog  trains  in  winter,  he  has  seen  their  war  dances  and 
their  heathen  worship.  He  still  lives  and  has  written 
some  splendid  books  about  Indian  life.  Rev.  Egerton 
R.  Young  was  born  in  1840,  in  the  province  of  Ontario, 
which  is  in  Canada,  just  north  of  the  great  Lake  On- 
tario. His  grandfather  had  been  a  missionary  to  the 
Indians,  and  Mr.  Young's  own  mother  was  a  teacher 
among  them  for  a  time.  When  only  sixteen,  Mr. 
Young  began  to  earn  his  own  bread  by  teaching  school, 
but  he  himself  kept  on  studying  all  the  time  he  was 
teaching  others,  and  finally  he  became  a  minister. 

30 


The  Call  to  the  Mission  Field. 

One  day,  much  to  his  surprise,  he  received  a  letter 
asking  him  to  go  out  as  a  missionary  to  the  Indians. 
He  had  not  thought  of  doing  so  before,  but  after 
prayerfully  thinking  it  over,  he  decided  that  God  was 
calling  him  to  do  His  work,  and  so  he  had  better  go. 
His  field  of  work  was  near  Lake  Winnipeg,  which  is 
directly  north  of  Minnesota,  quite  a  journey  from  his 
home  at  Hamilton  on  Lake  Ontario.  A  great  part  of 
the  trip  was  made  in  large  canoes,  rowed  by  eight 
Indians.  At  times  traveling  was  very  enjoyable.  But 
sometimes  there  were  some  unexpected  discomforts, 
as,  for  instance,  when  an  ox  was  taken  on  board  and 
was  made  to  stand  right  in  front  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Young,  with  his  head  on  one  side  of  the  canoe  and  his 
tail  over  the  other. 

Begins  His  Work. 

When  finally  the  end  of  the  journey  was  reached, 
Mr.  Young  found  that  the  Indians  he  was  to  work 
among  were  partly  heathen  and  partly  Christians. 
Other  missionaries  had  been  there  before  and  had 
done  their  work  well.  Mr.  Young  was  gladly  wel- 
comed by  the  Christians,  while  he  was  greeted  with  at 
least  some  friendly  curiosity  by  the  unconverted.  He 
found  that  many  came  to  the  Sunday  services  and  were 
very  quiet  and  reverent  while  in  the  church.  Some- 
times one  of  the  unconverted  men  would  come  in  in  the 
middle  of  a  service,  prancing  and  yelling.  The  first 
time  this  happened  Mr.  Young  would  have  stopped  the 
service  to  put  him  out,  but  as  his  congregation  did  not 
move  nor  object,  he  thought  that  he  would  wait  and 

31 


see  what  happened.  By  and  by,  the  man  sat  down, 
smoked  and  listened.  At  the  end  of  the  service,  the 
people  explained  to  Mr.  Young  why  they  did  not 
mind :  "Such  were  we  once,  as  ignorant  as  he  is  now. 
Let  us  have  patience  and  perhaps  he,  too,  will  soon 
decide  to  give  his  heart  to  God.  Let  him  come  and  he 
will  get  quiet  when  he  gets  the  light."  In  the  evening, 
when  all  at  home  was  quiet,  one  could  often  hear  hymns 
being  sung  in  the  Christian  homes,  while  from  the  tents 
of  the  "Medicine  Men"  came  the  shouts  and  yells  of 
their  heathen  festivities.  These  men  were  the  hardest 
to  win  for  Christ,  for  they  bitterly  hated  the  new 
religion.  They  knew  that  if  the  people  loved  and 
trusted  Jesus,  they  would  not  believe  in  their  charms 
and  tricks  any  more,  and  so  the  power  of  the  medicine 
man  would  be  gone.  Yet  even  many  of  these  were . 
won  over  by  Mr.  Young's  wonderful  preaching  and 
influence. 

Traveling  by  Canoe  and  Dog  Train. 

But  Mr.  Young  did  not  always  stay  at  home  with 
these  Indians.  There  were  many  others  near  and  far 
who  had  heard  of  him,  and  wanted  to  see  him  and  have 
him  tell  them  about  Jesus  and  the  Bible,  and  to  these 
also  Mr.  Young  wanted  to  bring  the  beautiful  story  of 
how  Jesus  saved  the  world  and  died  for  them  as  well 
as  for  the  white  men.  So,  gradually,  his  field  grew 
and  grew,  until  finally  to  reach  all  of  his  stations  he 
traveled  over  a  country  greater  than  all  England,  visit- 
ing each  station  only  twice  a  year.  When  he  took  a 
journey,  he  did  not  buy  a  ticket  and  then  get  into  a 
train  which  would  whirl  him  away  wherever  he  wanted 

32 


to  go.  In  summer,  with  his  Indian  guides,  he  traveled 
by  rivers  and  lakes  in  a  canoe,  carrying  the  light  craft 
along  the  shore  where  rapids  were  too  strong,  or  even 
from  one  lake  to  another.  Although  these  trips  were 
very  tiring,  they  were  as  nothing  compared  to  the 
winter  trips  when  cold  and  frost  added  all  sorts  of 
danger  to  the  usual  hardships.  On  these  trips,  dog- 
sleds  were  used  to  carry  the  provisions,  each  sled  being 
drawn  by  four  or  five  dogs,  while  the  men  ran  along 
on  snow-shoes.  Imagine  a  climate  so  cold  that  at  one 
meal  the  meat  had  to  be  thawed  out  three  successive 
times !  A  climate  in  which  it  was  impossible  to  sleep 
at  night  with  even  so  much  as  the  nose  uncovered 
without  having  it  frozen!  There  was  also  the  danger 
of  "snow-blindness,"  for  the  continual  driving  of  the 
snow  into  the  eyes,  the  fearful  cold  and  the  dazzling 
whiteness,  sometimes  causes  the  eyes  to  get  so  sore  as 
to  make  a  man  totally  blind  if  he  is  not  careful.  Trav- 
eHng  through  the  woods  this  way,  the  underbrush  is 
often  so  thick  that  it  is  hard  to  find  a  trail  broad 
enough  for  the  dog-trains. 

Yet  all  this  danger  and  hardship  did  Mr.  Young 
gladly  risk  in  order  to  go  from  one  place  to  another 
where  anxious  people  waited  to  be  told  about  their 
Lord  Jesus,  of  whom  they  knew  so  little.  They  wanted 
to  be  told  how  to  live,  what  would  please  and  what 
would  displease  the  Great  Spirit  who  was  so  good  to 
them.  For  several  years  Mr.  Young  went  about  teach- 
ing them ;  then  his  wife's  poor  health  and  the  need  of 
education  for  his  children  forced  him  to  leave  the  mis- 
sion fields.  After  serving  as  pastor  of  several  dif- 
ferent churches  for  some  years,  he  was  asked  by  so 

33 


many  people  to  tell  the  story  of  his  life  to  the  world, 
that  he  began  traveling  about  giving  lectures  and 
preaching  about  the  mission  work  in  which  he  is  so 
deeply  interested.  In  this  work  he  is  still  engaged, 
and  it  is  to  be  earnestly  hoped  that  every  one  of  us 
will  some  day  have  an  opportunity  to  hear  him  tell 
of  his  wonderful  work  and  thrilling  experiences  among 
the  Indians. 

Questions. 

1.  Why  did  Mr.  Young  go  to  tell  the  Indians  of  Jesus 

Christ? 

2.  How  did  he  travel  in  summer  and  in  winter  ? 

3.  How  did  some  of  the  unconverted  Indians  behave  in 

church? 

4.  What  did  the  converted  Indians  advise? 

5.  Why  should  we  help  send  the  Gospel  to  the  Indians? 

Interesting  Books^  cy  Dr.  E.  R.  Young. 

"By  Canoe  and  Dog  Train." 
"With  My  Dogs  in  the  North  Land." 
"On  the  Indian  Trail." 
"Three  Boys  in  the  Wild  North  Land." 
"Stories  from  Indian  Wigwams  and  Northern  Camp 
Fires." 


34 


STUDY  V. 

GREAT  MISSIONARIES  IN  THE  DARK 
CONTINENT. 

^be  Xant)  of  Hfrica* 

Africa  and  Its  People. 

Far  away  across  the  seas  lies  Africa,  the  continent 
shaped  Hke  a  pear  turned  upside  down.  Sometimes  it  is 
called  the  "Dark  Continent"  because  of  so  much  sin 
and  ignorance  that  are  there,  and  because  it  is  in  such 
need  of  gospel  light.  It  is  a  very  old  country  and  in 
the  Old  Testament  we  read  stories  about  it.  Abra- 
ham was  there  once,  Joseph  was  taken  there  and  sold, 
Moses  was  born  and  grew  up  there,  and  Jesus  when 
He  was  a  little  child  was  taken  there  for  safety  from 
wicked  King  Herod.  We  are  to  study  therefore  about 
a  land  of  which  we  have  heard  something  before. 

Africa  is  more  than  three  times  as  large  as  the 
United  States  and  has  nearly  twice  as  many  people 
living  in  it  as  in  our  own  land.  It  is  very,  very 
hot  in  the  north  and  north-central  parts,  and  is  neve^ 
cold.  The  people  of  the  north  are  very  black,  with 
the  flat  nose  and  thick  lips  of  the  Negro,  but  on  the 
coast  and  in  the  south  the  natives  are  of  a  light  choco- 
late color,  having  somewhat  pointed  noses  and  thin- 
ner lips. 

On  the  west  coast  there  is  a  little  village  called 

35 


Lolodorf.  Here  the  houses  are  only  about  three  feet 
high.  They  are  made  of  grasses,  and  the  people  who 
live  in  these  tiny  homes  are  very,  very  strange  look- 
ing. They  are  dwarfs.  The  men  are  only  four  and 
a  half  feet  tall.  The  women  are  a  few  inches  shorter, 
and  they  all  live  in  these  odd  little  houses,  into  which 
they  must  crawl  on  their  hands  and  knees. 

African  Homes. 

All  African  houses  are  strange  looking.  In  the 
north  they  are  made  of  stone  and  are  two  stories  high. 
They  have,  however,  only  one  room  on  a  floor,  so  you 
must  not  imagine  anything  very  large.  This  style  is 
copied  from  the  Arabs.  In  the  south  and  on  the 
coasts  one-story  houses  are  the  fashion,  while  in 
Central  Africa  the  houses  are  made  of  a  reed  grass 
called  esparto.  These  houses  have  but  one  room, 
and  in  it  live,  not  only  a  whole  family,  but  whatever 
animals  they  own.  A  missionary  once  visited  one  of 
these  homes  in  which  were  living  eleven  people  and 
seventeen  goats.  This  hut  was  fifteen  feet  square. 
The  roofs  are  covered  with  mud  baked  hard  by  the 
sun.  There  is  no  chimney,  and  no  stove.  There  are 
no  windows.  There  is  no  plaster  on  the  walls,  no 
tables;  not  a  chair  is  to  be  seen,  and  the  bed,  instead  of 
a  mattress,  springs  and  frame,  is  but  grass  which 
grows  up  right  through  the  hard  soil. 

The  people  are  very  poor.  Their  food  is  chiefly 
dates  and  plantains.  The  latter  look  like  sweet 
potatoes  and  have  seeds  in  the  center  like  squash. 
Sometimes  fish  are  caught  and  are  thought  a  great 
treat.  Meat  is  a  rare  delicacy,  but  let  me  tell  you 
how  they  get  it,  cook  it,  and  eat  it. 

36 


An  Elephant  Hunt. 
It  is  morning.  The  boys  are  off  fishing  and  the 
girls  are  running  about,  hatless  in  spite  of  the  burning 
sun.  The  women  are  pounding  meal  to  make  a 
tough,  hard  cracker.  Suddenly  a  wild  yell  is  heard, 
and  there  is  a  frantic  rush.  In  comes  one  of  the  men, 
breathless  and  waving  his  knife  over  his  head.  ' '  An 
elephant,  an  elephant!"  he  exclaims  when  he  has 
gotten  his  breath — ' '  An  elephant  down  in  the  jungle!" 
In  great  excitement  the  women  quickly  get  ready  a 
drug  made  from  poisonous  herbs.  It  is  to  put  the 
elephant  to  sleep.  The  man  who  first  discovered  him 
takes  it  and  hurries  off  to  the  jungle,  where  he  scatters 
it  on  the  leaves  that  the  elephant  is  likely  to  eat. 
Then  all  the  men  circle  around  the  jungle  where  the 
elephant  is  calmly  eating  the  poisonous  leaves.  Pre- 
sently he  grows  drowsy.  The  drug  is  working,  and 
as  the  moon  comes  out  above  the  trees,  the  natives 
steal  quietly  nearer  and  nearer  to  see  if  he  is  still 
asleep.  Finding  him  so,  the  chiefs  of  the  village  draw 
closer  yet.  The  bush  cracks  under  their  feet,  and 
they  listen  lest  the  elephant  has  been  aroused,  for  he 
is  a  dangerous  enemy.  But  no,  he  is  still  asleep ;  his 
deep  breathing  grows  louder  as  they  draw  nearer,  and 
no  other  sound  is  heard  save  the  excited  beating  of 
their  hearts.  All  is  quiet  for  a  moment,  then  when 
the  signal  is  given  the  arrows  fly.  Roused  by  the 
stinging  pain  and  furious  at  the  attack,  the  great 
monster  rushes  at  his  foes.  Waving  his  great  trunk 
in  the  air  and  bellowing  loudly,  the  giant  of  the  forest 
pursues  them,  breaking  down  the  branches  and  up- 
rooting vines  in  his  path,  until,  exhausted  by  the  loss 
of  blood  and  weakened  by  the  further  attacks  of  the 

37 


natives,  he  falls  dead.  The  hunters,  shouting  wildly, 
gather  around  him  and  promptly  cut  him  to  pieces. 
The  largest  piece  goes  to  the  man  who  first  discovered 
him,  the  remainder  being  given  to  the  men  who  took 
an  active  part  in  the  hunt. 

The  women's  part  is  now  most  important,  as 
they  are  the  cooks.  A  hole  is  dug  in  the  ground. 
This  is  filled  with  wood,  which  is  set  on  fire  and  covered 
over.  After  a  day  it  is  uncovered  and  a  leg  or  shoul- 
der of  elephant  is  thrust  in  on  the  ashes.  The  sides 
of  the  hole  are  baking  hot,  and  after  leaving  the  meat 
in  for  a  day  it  is  cooked  and  ready  for  the  feast. 

African  Salad. 

During  this  day  of  cooking  the  boys  and  girls  are 
busy  gathering  caterpillars  and  ants,  which  they  will 
frizzle  in  palm  oil  and  serve  with  the  elephant,  much 
as  we  serve  salad  with  cold  meat.  Palm  oil  is  thick 
and  very  much  like  axle  grease  in  odor.  So  should 
you  want  very  much  to  taste  a  real  African  dish  you 
need  only  follow  this  recipe:  Gather  a  few  cater- 
pillars and  some  ants  together,  then  scrape  off  some 
axle  grease  from  a  wagon  wheel,  fry  all  together  and 
serve  on  leaves,  and  eat,  as  the  Africans  do,  with 
your  fingers. 

Elephants  are  not  the  only  animals  found  in  Africa. 
The  forests  are  full  of  wild  beasts.  Lions,  leopards, 
wild  cats,  the  gorilla  and  rhinoceros  abound  and  the 
beautiful  forests  are  full  of  many  sorts  of  snakes, 
many  of  which  are  poisonous  and  all  of  which  are 
dangerous. 

Native  Dress. 

The  natives  wear  very  little  clothing,  but  as  soon  as 

38 


they  see  our  clothes  they  want  them  and  think  Httle 
or  nothing  of  robbing  missionaries  or  traders  to  get 
them.  A  native  chief  has  been  seen  by  a  traveler, 
dressed  in  a  high  silk  hat  and  war  paint,  parading 
around  as  "proud  as  a  peacock." 

The  Need  for  Christ. 

Many  of  the  Africans  do  not  know  about  Jesus. 
They  believe  in  spirits  and  worship  them.  Things  that 
are  dangerous,  such  as  lightning  and  hurricanes* 
whirlpools  and  rapids,  they  think  are  caused  by  evil 
spirits.  They  throw  all  they  own  into  the  rapids, 
for  instance,  to  keep,  as  they  think,  the  evil  spirit  of 
the  waters  from  visiting  them.  They  are  very  much 
afraid  of  death  and  wear  bits  of  wood  and  stone 
around  their  necks  to  keep  it  away.  They  believe 
that  every  one  who  dies  has  been  killed  by  a  witch. 
They  try  to  discover  who  the  witch  is,  and  will  kill 
any  man,  woman  or  child  whom  they  think  has  be- 
witched the  person  who  died. 

Long  years  ago  Jesus  sought  refuge  in  Africa,  and 
now  He  wants  Africa  to  seek  refuge  in  Him.  Many 
missionaries  in  His  name  have  gone  to  tell  the  poor 
heathen  black  men  of  salvation,  and  we  shall  see  in 
our  following  studies  what  they  were  able  to  do. 

Questions. 

1.  Mention  the  names  of  three  Bible  characters  who 

lived  in  Africa. 

2.  If  you  were  a  little  African  boy  living  in  Central 

Africa,  could  you  take  your  goat  or  dog  to  bed 
with  you  at  night  ? 

39 


3     If  Jyou  were  a  great  hunter,  what  kind  of  wild 
animals  would  you  find  in  Africa  ? 

4.  Describe  an  elephant  hunt. 

5.  ^Why  do  the  people  in  Africa  need  the  Gospel? 

Interesting  Books  for  Scholars. 
.^  "Our  Little  African  Cousin,"  by  Wade. 

Peril  and  Adventure  in  Central  Africa,"  by  Bishop 
Hannington. 

Article    entitled    "African    Curiosity"    in    "Fifty 
Missionary  Stories,"  by  Belle  M.  Brain. 

Books  for  Teachers  before  Teaching  this  Study. 

"Tropical  Africa,"  by  Henry  W.  Drummond,  D.D. 
"Fetichism  in  West  Africa,"  by  Robert  Nassau, 
D.D. 

"Travel  in  West  Africa,"  by  Mary  H.  Kingsley. 
"  In  Darkest  Africa,"  by  Henry  M.  Stanley. 


40 


STUDY  VI. 

GREAT  MISSIONARIES  IN  THE  DARK 
CONTINENT. 

IRobert  flDoffat, 

1795-1883. 

Bmonfl  tbe  JSecbuanaa  ot  Soutb  Btcica. 

"Oh  that  I  had  a  thousand  lives  and  a  thousand  bodies,  all 
of  them  should  be  devoted  to  no  other  employment  but  to  preach 
Christ  to  these  degraded,  despised,  yet  beloved  mortals P' — Mof- 
fat. 

A  Trip  to  Africa. 

How  would  you  like  to  go  on  a  long  trip  to  that 
country  we  studied  about  in  the  last  chapter  ?  Away  off 
to  Africa,  to  that  queer  land  of  which  so  little  is  known 
that  sometimes  it  is  called  the  "Great  Puzzle."  See 
if  you  remember  how  big  a  place  Africa  is,  and  how 
many  and  what  kind  of  people  live  there.  Do  you 
think  that  you  would  like  to  be  a  little  black  girl  or 
boy  and  live  there  instead  of  in  America  ? 

Afrikaner  the  Robber  Chief. 

To-day  we  are  going  to  a  special  place,  to  Kuru- 
man,  in  the  southern  part  of  Africa,  where  Robert 
Moffat  worked  from  1817  to  1870.  Some  of  the 
wildest  tribes  lived  there,  and  of  their  many  Chiefs 

41 


Afrikaner  was  the  most  dreaded.  Originally  he  had 
been  employed  by  a  Dutch  farmer,  but  was  treated 
so  cruelly  that  Afrikaner  at  last  killed  him  and  be- 
came an  outlaw.  He  then  began  a  life  of  robbery  and 
pillage  and  killed  more  people  than  any  other  native. 
The  very  mention  of  his  name  struck  terror  into  the 
hearts  of  the  Dutch  farmers  or  Boers.  He  and  the 
men  of  his  tribe  would  steal  everything  they  could 
find,  carrying  off  cattle  and  even  the  ripened  crops. 
Then  if  the  Boer  showed  any  unwillingness  to  part 
with  his  goods,  they  would  kill  him.  Do  you  wonder 
that  Afrikaner  was  feared  ?  Near  him  another  Chief , 
Mosilikatse,  lived,  and  between  these  and  other  Chiefs 
war  was  continually  carried  on.  The  natives  lived  in 
little  huts,  built  in  a  circle  around  an  inner  circle, 
where  the  cattle  were  driven  for  safety  in  case  of 
danger,  for  in  that  land  the  cattle  were  first  looked 
after,  and  then  the  women  and  children. 

These  groups  of  homes,  if  we  can  call  such  a  hut  a 
home,  formed  little  villages  or  kraals,  and  often  in 
these  wars  whole  villages  would  be  burned,  and  the 
women  and  children  carried  off  prisoners. 

Native  Customs. 

Of  the  native  dress  I  can  tell  you  little,  for  there 
was  very  little  to  speak  of  when  a  skirt  was  a  bride's 
trousseau.  As  soon  as  she  was  married,  all  her  hair 
was  shaved  off  except  a  queer  little  tuft  on  the  top  of 
her  head.  Necklaces,  bracelets  and  even  anklets  were 
very  popular,  and  they  were  made  of  shells,  stones, 
bits  of  brass  or  of  anything  that  could  be  strung  or 
tied  on.  Among  these  tribes  the  women  did  all  the 
work,  not  only  cooking  and  taking  care  of  the  house, 

42 


but  out  in  the  fields  they  built  the  fences  and  tended 
the  crops.  When  they  were  old  and  worn  out  by 
such  hard  work,  both  men  and  women  were  put  in 
lonely  places  to  starve  to  death,  and  it  was  to  tell 
these  people  about  Jesus  and  His  love  that  Robert 
Moffat  left  Scotland  in  1817. 

Moffat's  Early  Life. 
He  was  a  Scotch  lad,  born  just  four  days  before 
Christmas,  December  21st,  1795.  His  parents  were 
poor  but  earnest  Christians.  On  the  long  winter 
evenings,  as  the  children  were  gathered  around  the 
fireplace  watching  the  big  logs  burn,  their  mother 
would  tell  them  stories  of  far-away  mission  lands. 
Little  did  she  know  then  that  one  of  her  own  boys 
would  become  a  pioneer  missionary  to  dark  Africa. 
Robert  was  fond  of  adventure.  He  had  often  watched 
the  big  ships  as  they  came  up  the  Forth  on  which  he 
lived,  so  he  took  it  into  his  head  to  run  off  to  sea.  The 
captain  was  kind  to  him,  and  his  parents  having 
learned  where  he  was,  allowed  him  to  continue  on  the 
vessel  for  several  trips.  After  a  number  of  hair- 
breadth escapes  from  death,  he  returned  home  and 
was  apprenticed  to  a  gardener  when  only  fourteen. 
He  had  to  work  very  hard,  and  often  in  the  cold 
winter  he  was  up  and  in  the  garden  at  four  o'clock  in 
the  morning.  He  had  had  very  little  schooling,  giv- 
ing it  up  by  the  time  he  was  twelve  years  old.  How- 
ever, he  studied  some  at  night  after  the  work  of  the 
day  was  done.  Later  he  secured  a  good  position  at 
a  place  called  High  Leigh,  and  it  was  while  here  that 
he  was  converted  at  a  Methodist  revival  at  the  age  of 
eighteen.     He  had  never  been  a  wayward  boy,  for  he 

43 


had  been  carefully  trained  at  home,  brought  up  on 
the  Shorter  Catechism,  and  many  prayers  had  been 
offered  for  him. 

After  his  conversion,  Moffat  took  a  great  interest 
in  Christian  work,  for  his  was  an  energetic  and  enthu- 
siastic nature,  and  whatever  he  did  he  did  with  all 
his  heart. 

The  Notice  on  a  Country  Road. 

The  way  in  which  he  was  led  to  become  a  missionary 
by  the  reading  of  a  placard  on  a  country  road  is  very 
remarkable,  and  shows  how  very  little  things  some- 
times shape  the  whole  course  of  a  life.  One  evening, 
on  his  way  to  a  village  six  miles  from  High  Leigh,  he 
noticed  a  sign  as  he  crossed  a  bridge,  and  stopped  to 
read  it.  It  told  of  a  missionary  meeting  that  was  to 
be  held.  He  had  never  heard  of  such  a  meeting  be- 
fore, and  at  once  he  remembered  the  missionary 
stories  that  his  mother  used  to  tell  on  the  winter 
evenings  as  they  sat  around  the  fire.  The  thought 
flashed  through  his  mind :  ' '  Why  should  not  I  be  a 
missionary?"  He  resolved  that  he  would  be,  and  in 
due  time,  through  God's  help,  we  find  him  in  South 
Africa. 

Strange  that  Afrikaner,  the  robber  chief,  should 
have  liked  Moffat;  but  he  did,  and  welcomed  him  to 
his  kraal  or  village,  and  immediately  presented  him 
with  a  house.  Imagine  living  in  a  house  that  took 
some  women  only  half  an  hour  to  build!  Can  you 
guess  of  what  it  was  made?  Just  of  big  leaves  and 
grass  mats,  sewed  together  and  placed  on  poles  like  a 
tent.  Here  Moffat  lived  and  worked  until  a  more 
suitable  house  was  built  at  Kuruman.     Little  can  we 

44 


realize  what  it  meant  to  be  the  only  white  man  among 
those  thousands  of  Negroes;  but  Jesus  was  with  him 
and  strengthened  him,  keeping  him  safe  amidst  great 
dangers.     Once  a  lion  nearly  killed  him.     We  do  not 
know  what  it  is  to  go  thirsty  for  days  at  a  time,  but 
he  did,  and  in  a  heat  equal  to  our  hottest  summer 
weather.     The  natives  stole  his  food  and  clothing: 
indeed,  they  took  anything  and  everything  that  they 
could  lay  their  hands  on.     Bread  was  taken  out  of  the 
oven,  and  one  day  Mrs.  Moffat  asked  one  of  the  native 
women  to  be  kind  enough  to  move  out  of  the  kitchen, 
so  that  she  could  close  it  before  going  to  the  chapel. 
But  the  woman  seized  a  stick  of  wood,  and  would  have 
hit  her  over  the  head  with  it,  so  that  she  had  to  allow 
the  native  to  stay  and  take  from  the  kitchen  any- 
thing she  liked. 

Yet  Moffat  remained,  preaching  and  teaching,  for 
nine  years — a  longer  time  perhaps  than  you  are  old — 
before  he  saw  any  change  among  them. 

The  Change. 

The  natives  were  very  superstitious.  Because  it 
did  not  rain  for  a  long  time,  they  thought  the  mission- 
ary was  to  blame.  A  bag  of  salt  that  Moffat  had  in 
his  wagon,  they  said,  frightened  the  rain  away.  An- 
other time  it  was  the  sound  of  the  chapel  bells.  It 
took  great  patience  to  work  with  such  people,  but 
slowly  and  surely  a  change  came,  and  the  natives 
flocked  to  hear  about  Jesus,  to  confess  their  sins  and 
to  try  to  do  what  He  would  have  them  do.  Mrs. 
Moffat  was  kept  busy  teaching  the  women,  and  even 
the  men,  to  sew  and  to  make  clothes  from  skins. 
Better  houses  soon  surrounded  the  church,  and  the 

45 


children  attended  the  mission  school.  Such  wonder- 
ful changes  could  not  take  place  without  all  the  other 
tribes  hearing  about  it,  and  from  seven  hundred  miles 
north  Mosilikatse,  King  of  the  Matabele  people,  sent 
two  warriors  to  find  out  if  it  were  true,  and  to  ask 
"Moshete,  "as  they  called  Moffat,  to  come  and  tell 
them  this  wonderful  story  that  wrought  such  changes. 
He  went,  but  not  in  a  train,  for  fifty  years  ago  no  one 
had  seen  a  train  or  even  a  wagon.  The  natives 
thought  Moffat's  ox-cart  a  huge  monster  that  would 
eat  them  up  if  they  came  close  enough.  There  was 
not  even  a  road  to  follow,  only  these  native  warriors 
to  guide  them  over  dreary  deserts  where  for  days 
they  had  nothing  to  drink,  and  where  they  were  almost 
parched  under  the  scorching  sun.  But  Moffat  en- 
dured all  for  Christ's  sake,  in  order  to  bring  the  Gospel 
to  this  inland  tribe. 

Translates  the  Bible. 

In  all  this  country  no  one  could -read,  for  there  were 
no  books.  While  busy  preaching  and  teaching,  Mof- 
fat was  preparing  the  best  book  that  he  could  give 
them.  He  was  putting  the  Bible  into  their  language, 
translating  it.  Perhaps  this  is  the  greatest  thing 
that  he  did,  for  in  South  Africa  to-day  thousands  of 
natives  are  using  his  translation. 

Returns  to  England: 

After  spending  a  lifetime,  fifty-three  years,  in  mis- 
sionary service,  Moffat  and  his  wife  returned  to  Eng- 
land, only  because  their  health  would  no  longer  per- 
mit them  to  remain  in  Africa.  Reluctantly  they 
said  farewell  to  the  natives  whom  they  had  grown  to 

46 


love,  and  among  whom  they  had  labored  so  long. 
Mrs.  Moffat  died  soon  after  reaching  England,  but 
her  husband  spent  the  last  years  of  his  life  in  travel- 
ing through  England  and  Scotland,  telling  the  story 
of  Africa  and  arousing  interest  in  Missions  there.  He 
died,  at  the  age  of  eighty-eight.  May  loth,  1883. 

Have  you  ever  dropped  a  pebble  in  the  water,  and 
watched  the  rippling  circles  that  it  makes,  each  one 
wider  than  the  last?  Thus  was  it  with  Moffat's  influ- 
ence. You  could  never  count  the  wonderful  changes 
that  resulted  because  this  man  resolved  when  only  a 
boy  to  serve  Jesus.  South  Africa  is  a  different  place 
to-day  because  his  life  was  spent  there.  Can't  we  catch 
his  spirit  and  begin  now  at  home,  at  school,  wherever 
we  are,  to  make  things  different  because  we  love  Jesus 
and  are  trying  to  serve  Him  ? 

Questions. 

1.  Who  was  Afrikaner,  and  why  did  he  become  such 

an  outlaw? 

2.  What  traits  in  Moffat  do  you  like  best? 

3 .  What  led  him  to  become  a  missionary  ? 

4.  What  sort  of  people  did  he  work  among  in  Africa? 

5 .  What  proved  his  great  patience  ? 

Interesting  Book  for  Scholars. 

"Great  Missionaries  of  the  Church,"  by  Creegan, 
Chapter  19. 

Books  for  Teachers  before  Teaching  this  Study. 

"  Life  of  Robert  Moffat,"  by  D.  J.  Deane. 

"  Lives  of  Mary  and  Robert  Moffat,'   by  their  Son. 


47 


STUDY  VII. 

GREAT  MISSIONARIES  IN  THE  DARK 
CONTINENT. 

Samuel  H&jai  Crowtber, 

1809-1892. 

mative  3Bi0bop  of  Wicet  Africa. 
H  Xfttle  Slave  JSob  wbo  Became  a  jflRigafonarg, 

The  Slave  Dealers. 

On  the  west  coast  of  Africa  about  one  hundred 
years  ago,  there  Hved  a  band  of  very  wicked  people 
who  were  Mohammedans.  They  belonged  to  a  tribe 
named  Foulah.  Their  business  was  a  strange  and 
brutal  one,  for  they  dealt  in  human  lives.  The  chiefs 
of  the  tribe  would  lay  their  plans  to  attack  some  peace- 
ful village,  usually  at  the  dead  of  night,  with  a 
large  band  of  their  fighting  men.  Their  purpose  was 
to  drive  the  people  from  their  homes  and  sell  them  as 
slaves.  If  the  people  tried  to  defend  themselves  or 
their  property,  the  village  was  promptly  set  on  fire, 
and  they  would  fall  into  the  hands  of  their  cruel  cap- 
tors. Then  began  the  slave-march.  These  marches 
were  sometimes  as  long  as  one  hundred  miles,  over 
dry  and  scorching  plains,  over  great  hills,  and  some- 
times  through   streams   filled   with   crocodiles.      The 

48 


weak  and  the  children  fell  by  the  way,  and  were  left 
to  be  trampled  on  by  the  stronger,  who  formed  a 
long  human  express,  freight  express,  to  the  coast, 
where  the  natives  were  sold  for  about  $i.oo  apiece 
to  traders  from  many  lands.  They  were  then  taken 
far  across  the  seas  to  work  for  their  new  employers. 
Sometimes  as  many  as  100,000  were  taken  from  their 
homes  in  a  single  year.  The  Negroes  whom  we  see 
on  our  city  streets  to-day  are  descendants  of  slaves 
brought  into  this  country  from  Africa  by  the  British 
before  the  Revolution.  So  you  see  we  have  a  very 
special  reason  for  being  interested  in  our  dark-skinned 
brothers  and  sisters  who  live  in  the  "Dark  Continent." 

Capture  of  Adjai. 

In  West  Africa  lies  the  Yoruba  country,  parts  of 
which  are  very  beautiful.  Here  the  Foulah  tribe 
were  destroying  property  and  seeking  slaves,  and  here 
lived  a  little  boy  named  Adjai.  He  was  born  in  1809, 
or  nearly  a  century  ago,  in  a  village  called  Oshogiui. 
It  was  a  very  large  place,  and  boasted  of  3,000  fighting 
men.  It  is  no  wonder  that  this  being  such  an  im- 
portant centre,  the  Mohammedan  men-stealers  should 
choose  to  visit  it. 

Early  one  morning  the  Foulahs  formed  their  deadly 
circle  around  it.  The  women  were  preparing  break- 
fast when  down  upon  them  swooped  their  enemies. 
Mothers  with  little  ones  in  their  arms  rushed  to  the 
nearest  bush  seeking  to  hide  their  children ;  older  boys 
and  girls,  left  to  protect  themselves,  tried  to  get  away. 
In  the  confusion  little  Adjai  was  separated  from  his 
family.    He  was  only  a  lad  of  twelve,  but  he  tried  to 

49 


protect  his  poor  hut.  His  efforts  were,  of  course, 
fruitless,  and  soon  his  childhood's  home  went  up  in 
smoke.  His  mother  sought  shelter  with  the  younger 
children,  and  Adjai  was  chained  with  other  slaves  to 
a  Foulah  slave-driver  and  taken  far,  far  from  every- 
one and  everything  he  had  ever  known  and  loved. 

Twenty  long,  weary  miles  the  poor  boy  marched. 
He  was  then  sold  to  a  chief  in  exchange  for  a  horse. 
His  little  sister  was  bought  by  the  same  man,  so  Adjai 
was  for  a  little  time  with  one  of  his  own  kin  again. 
Adjai's  mother,  with  her  ten  months  old  baby,  was 
sold  to  another  man  without  so  much  as  a  chance  to 
say  "good-bye"  to  her  other  children.  After  varying 
experiences  Adjai  was  sold  to  a  Portuguese  trader,  and 
placed  for  a  time  in  a  slave  pen,  crowded  as  no  man 
would  crowd  cattle  in  our  own  land.  His  master  was 
very  cruel  and  poor  Adjai  was  very  badly  treated 
and  often  was  beaten.  Before  long  he  was  placed  on 
board  a  slave  ship  with  i86  other  slaves,  to  be  taken 
many  miles  from  Africa  and  sold  in  a  foreign  land. 

Adjai  Rescued. 

For  very  many  years  Great  Britain  had  bought  slaves 
in  Africa  to  use  in  her  colonies,  and  did  not  seem  to 
realize  the  great  wrong  she  was  doing.  The  slaves 
were,  however,  cruelly  treated,  and  when  this  became 
known  in  England  good  people  tried  to  undo  the  wrong 
they  had  done,  not  only  by  not  buying  any  more  slaves, 
but  by  keeping  other  nations  from  doing  so.  The  year 
before  Adjai  was  born,  Wilberforce  made  a  motion 
in  Parliament  for  the  stopping  of  the  slave  trade, 
and  after  that  year  no  slave  could  be  lawfully  brought 

50 


into  any  part  of  the  British  dominions.  English  steam- 
ers watched  carefully  the  African  coasts,  and  when 
the  two  slave-ships  bearing  Adjai  and  the  other  slaves 
sailed  out  into  the  ocean,  they  were  chased  by  these 
English  boats,  who  took  all  the  slaves  on  board,  intend- 
ing to  free  them  later  on.  One  ship  was  caught  in  a 
storm  and  lost  with  all  on  board.  The  other,  on  which 
was  Adjai,  the  "little  slave  boy  who  became  a  mis- 
sionary," came  safe  into  port  at  Bathurst,  on  the 
west  coast  of  Africa. 

From  Bathurst  Adjai  was  taken  to  the  home  of 
some  missionaries  in  Sierra  Leone,  who  first  told  him 
the  story  of  Jesus.  He  was  very  happy  here,  and 
was  especially  glad  to  see  the  sunshine  again,  for  the 
slave-ship  had  been  so  very  dark.  He  was  also  de- 
lighted with  a  candle  which  was  always  placed  on 
the  table  at  meals.  Soon  he  was  sent  to  a  mission 
school  at  Freetown,  the  largest  city  in  Sierra  Leone, 
his  expenses  being  paid  by  an  English  clergyman 
named  Samuel  Crowther. 

It  was  while  at  school  here  that  he  accepted  Jesus 
as  his  Saviour.  He  was  baptized  on  December  ii, 
1825,  when  he  was  sixteen  years  old,  taking  the  name 
of  the  Englishman  who  paid  for  his  tuition.  He  was 
afterwards  no  longer  known  as  Adjai,  but  as  Samuel 
Adjai  Crowther. 

Goes  to  England. 
Crowther,  besides  his  studies,  was  taught  the  trade 
of  a  carpenter.  This  was  very  useful  to  him  in  later 
life.  Shortly  after  his  conversion  kind  friends  offered 
to  take  him  with  them  to  England,  where  he  stayed 
for  a  year,  studying  in  English  schools,  and  learning 

51 


English  customs  and  manners.  When  he  returned  to 
Africa  he  entered  the  Church  Missionary  Society  In- 
dustrial Boarding  School  at  Fourah  Bay.  This  school 
has  since  become  the  Fourah  Bay  College,  one  of  the 
best  colleges  in  Africa.  It  was  while  here  at  school 
that  Crowther  decided  to  become  a  missionary  to  his 
own  people,  also  here  that  he  met  and  married  a 
native  Christian,  who,  like  himself,  had  been  rescued 
from  a  slave-ship.  When  he  and  his  wife  were  gradu- 
ated they  were  sent  to  teach  school  at  several  differ- 
ent places,  and  later  returned  to  the  College,  where 
Crowther  became  one  of  the  best  instructors. 

Exploring  Trip. 

England  was  at  this  time  most  anxious  to  explore 
the  Niger  River;  first,  to  put  a  stop  to  slavery  in  the 
interior  of  Africa,  and  also  to  start  trade  with  the 
natives.  The  Church  Missionary  Society,  one  of  the 
strongest  of  English  societies,  offered  to  send  two  mis- 
sionaries with  the  expedition,  and  Samyel  Crowther 
and  the  Rev.  James  Fredk.  Schon  were  chosen. 

It  was  a  long  and  dangerous  journey,  and  an  account 
of  the  strange  peoples  they  passed  and  their  strange 
homes,  the  curious  trees  and  fruits  and  flowers  they 
saw,  and  the  strange  looking  animals  they  met  would 
fill  many  books.  As  they  visited  heathen  countries, 
Crowther  tried  to  tell  the  kings  and  their  people  about 
Jesus,  for  he  never  forgot  that  this  was  his  first  duty. 
He  also  told  them  how  wrong  slavery  is.  Sometimes 
these  kings  were  glad  to  see  the  white  men  and  their 
ships,  but  in  other  places  the  natives  would  row  out  to 
meet  them  armed  with  bows  and  arrows. 

52 


A  few  months  passed,  and  the  deadly  climate  killed 
many  of  the  crew,  so  that  it  was  decided  to  return  to 
the  coast. 

Ordained  to  the  Ministry. 

Up  to  this  time  Crowther  had  been  known  as  a 
native  teacher.  His  splendid  work  on  the  exploring 
trip  showed  plainly  that  he  was  far  above  the  average 
Negro  worker,  and  Mr.  Schon  wrote  to  England  tell- 
ing how  he  had  preached  the  Gospel,  how  he  had 
cared  for  the  dead  and  dying,  and  recommended  that 
he  be  prepared  for  ordination  to  the  ministry.  Because 
of  this  Crowther  was  recalled  to  England,  where  he 
studied  for  a  year  and  was  then  ordained  in  1843. 
He  returned  to  Africa,  and  began  at  once  preaching  the 
glad  tidings  of  salvation. 

A  Happy  Reunion. 

"One  day  when  Crowther  was  visiting  one  of  the 
mission  stations,  near  Freetown,  where  he  had  been 
taken  shortly  after  he  was  rescued  from  the  slave- 
ship,  he  noticed  an  old  Negro  woman  whom  he  did 
not  know.  She  sat  upon  a  back  seat  in  the  corner, 
and  seemed  to  be  fairly  drinking  in  the  words  of  hope 
he  was  speaking.  Her  face  was  so  sorrowful  that  it 
filled  Crowther's  heart  with  pity,  and  after  he  had  fin- 
ished talking  he  went  down  and  sat  by  her,  and  asked 
her  to  tell  him  all  about  her  troubles." 

The  poor  old  woman  had  never  been  used  to  sym- 
pathy, and  the  first  touch  of  it  brought  a  flood  of 
tears,  and  through  her  sobs  she  told  him  of  her  hard 
life.  ''But,"  she  said,  ''the  greatest  trouble  I  ever 
had  was  when  I  lost  my  little  boy." 

53 


Crowther  asked  how  long  ago  this  had  happened. 

"Oh/'  she  said,  ''it  was  many  years  ago  when  he 
was  about  eleven  years  old." 

Then  a  thought  came  into  his  mind,  and  he  looked 
at  her  quickly  and  closely.  Was  his  hope  to  be  at  last 
realized?  Alas,  in  that  wrinkled  face  he  could  not 
trace  a  remembered  feature.  Still  he  looked,  and  with 
a  trembling  voice  asked:  "What  was  your  child's 
name  ?" 

The  reply  came  back  in  a  sob:  "Adjai;  I  called 
him  Adjai." 

His  life-long  prayer  had  been  answered.  "Mother," 
he  cried,  with  great  joy.  The  long  separated  mother 
and  son  were  together  once  more.  God  had  been  good, 
and  given  her  back  to  the  embrace  of  the  son  who 
had  never  ceased  to  long  for  her. 

Many  years  of  faithful  service  followed.  There 
came  a  day  when  the  Bishop  of  West  Africa  passed 
away.  Who  should  take  his  place?  Earnest  Christians  in 
England  gathered  together  to  choose  one  to  be  bishop 
over  the  African  Church,  and  after  much  careful  and 
prayerful  thought,  it  was  decided  to  appoint  Samuel 
Crowther  to  this  position.  Crowther  was  accordingly 
called  again  to  England,  and  at  the  age  of  fifty-five 
years  he  was  consecrated  Bishop  of  West  Africa  by 
the  United  Churches  of  England  and  Ireland. 

It  is  1892,  and  Crowther  has  just  died.  West  Africa 
mourns,  but  the  one  over  whose  home-going  their  eyes 
are  wet  was  once  just  a  little  African  boy  such  as  you 
may  help  to-day,  and  helping,  give  Africa  another  such 
missionary. 


54 


Questions. 

1.  Tell   the   story   of   Adjai's  capture   and   sale   into 

slavery  ? 

2.  By  whom  was  he  rescued? 

3.  How  did  he  get  the  name  of  Crowther? 

4.  Why  was  it  fitting  that  he  should  become  a  mis- 

sionary ? 

5.  Why  did  England  send  an  expedition  up  the  Niger 

River  ? 

6.  Tell  the  story  of  Crowther's  meeting  his  mother. 

7.  When  was  he  made  Bishop  ? 

Interesting  Books  for  Scholars. 

"Samuel  Crowther,"  by  Jesse  Page. 

"A  Miracle  of  African  Missions,"  by  John  Bell. 

Books  for  Teachers  before  Teaching  this  Study. 

"Workers  of  the  Church  Missionary  Society." 
"Great  Missionaries  of  the  Church,"  by  Creegan. 
"Samuel  Crowther,"  by  Jesse  Page. 


55 


STUDY  VIII. 

GREAT  MISSIONARIES  IN  THE  DARK 
CONTINENT 

2)av(t)  XivinQetone, 

1813-1873, 

/ffi)i06ionati2  j6xplorer  in  Central  Btrfca. 

*^  Anywhere,  provided  it  he  forward." — Livingstone. 

Bound  for  Africa. 

More  than  half  a  century  ago,  when  travel  by  sea 
was  not  as  easy  or  as  comfortable  as  to-day,  a  vessel 
set  sail  from  England  for  South  Africa  on  a  five 
months'  trip.  On  board  was  a  young  man,  twenty- 
seven  years  old,  bound  for  the  heart  of  the  Dark  Con- 
tinent. He  was  strong,  hearty  and  well  able  to  endure 
hardship  if  necessary.  He  had  a  happy  disposition 
and  a  cheery  face,  the  kind  of  a.  man  who  makes 
friends  readily  and  whose  friendship  makes  one  better. 
His  name  was  David  Livingstone,  and  his  home  had 
been  in  Scotland,  where  he  was  born  March  19,  18 13, 
at  Blantyre,  near  Glasgow.  His  father  and  mother 
were  poor  but  godly  people,  and  had  done  much  to 
influence  his  life.  When  he  was  but  ten  years  old 
he  commenced  work  in  a  cotton  mill,  and  with  some 
of  his  first  money  bought  a  Latin  grammar,  which 

56 


showed  that  he  had  a  desire  to  learn  even  if  he  could 
not  go  to  school.  His  ambition  was  to  advance,  and 
not  to  spend  all  his  days  in  a  cotton  factory. 

He  Makes  a  Decision. 

When  about  twenty  years  old  he  made  a  great 
decision.  Having  read  one  day  of  the  great  need  of 
the  people  in  China,  he  resolved  to  study  medicine, 
and  go  to  them  as  a  missionary.  It  took  several  years 
to  prepare  himself  for  this  great  work,  and  when  at 
last  he  was  ready  to  go,  England  and  China  were  at 
war,  so  that  God  opened  the  way  for  him  to  go  else- 
where. Robert  Moffat,  of  whom  we  have  heard,  was 
in  England,  pleading  for  workers  in  the  Dark  Continent 
of  Africa.  Livingstone  heard  him  speak,  and  after 
a  long  talk  with  him,  decided  to  go  to  the  land  where 
Moffat  had  spent  so  many  years. 

In  Africa. 

After  a  long  voyage,  the  young  missionary  reached 
Cape  Town.  From  here  the  journey  to  Kuruman, 
seven  hundred  miles  north,  had  to  be  made  with  ox- 
carts, and  traveling  was  slow  and  tiresome.  Living- 
stone did  not  remain  there  very  long,  for  he  wished  to 
push  on  farther  into  the  country  where  missionaries 
had  not  been  before.  One  day  he  had  an  encounter 
with  a  lion  that  nearly  cut  short  his  missionary  career. 
He  had  shot  the  animal,  when  it  sprang  upon  him 
and  shook  him  as  a  dog  would  a  rat,  crunching  the 
bones  of  his  arm  in  its  teeth.  If  it  had  not  been  for 
one  of  the  natives,  Livingstone  would  probably  have 
been  killed  then  and  there.  In  fact,  he  thought  that 
the  lion  was  going  to  make  a  meal  off  of  him,  and  the 

57 


idea  uppermost  in  his  mind  at  the  time  was,  what 
part  of  him  the  animal  would  eat  first. 

Shortly  after  this,  Livingstone  was  married  to 
Mary  Moffat,  whom  he  had  met  at  Kuruman  some 
months  before.  They  built  a  comfortable  little  home 
at  Mabotsa,  and  every  day  were  very  busy  with  their 
missionary  work,  Livingstone  serving  the  natives  as 
their  preacher,  teacher  and  doctor.  Patients  came 
to  him  from  far  and  near,  and  the  Africans  soon 
learned  that  he  was  their  friend. 

From  Mabotsa,  Livingstone  went  to  two  other 
places,  Chonuane  and  Kolobeng,  farther  in  the  in- 
terior, his  motto  always  being:  "Anywhere,  provided 
it  be  forward."  He  became  very  friendly  with  some 
of  the  native  Chiefs  of  the  Bakwain  tribe,  and  they 
and  many  of  their  people  became  Christians.  Both 
at  Chonuane  and  Kolobeng,  Livingstone  and  the 
natives  suffered  greatly  from  a  lack  of  water,  so  that 
he  determined  to  go  further  north  across  the  great 
Kalahari  Desert  to  the  country  beyond,  which  he  had 
heard  was  fertile  and  thickly  populated. 

Begins  Work  of  Exploration. 

After  making  three  trips  across  this  desert,  twice 
with  his  family,  and  having  discovered  Lake  Ngami 
and  the  Zambesi  river,  he  became  convinced  that  the 
greatest  missionary  work  he  could  do  would  be  to 
open  up  this  central  part  of  Africa  to  Christianity, 
civilization  and  trade.  He  realized  that  if  Africa 
was  to  be  won  for  Christ,  it  must  be  by  establishing  a 
chain  of  mission  stations  from  the  coast  to  the  far 
interior,  which  would  become  centres  of  Christian 
influence  for  all  the  surrounding  regions,  where  the 

58 


natives  could  be  trained  and  sent  out  as  teachers  of 
their  fellows.  He  knew  too  that  the  slave  trade  must 
be  put  down,  for  this  awful  traffic  brought  destruction 
and  death  wherever  it  was  carried  on. 

Therefore,  instead  of  remaining  in  one  place,  as  he 
had  done  at  first,  teaching  and  helping  the  compara- 
tively few  he  could  thus  reach,  God  was  now  calling 
him  to  the  larger  service  of  missionary  exploration. 
It  required  greater  sacrifices  than  he  had  yet  been 
called  upon  to  make.  It  meant  separation  from  his 
wife  and  children,  for  it  was  impossible  to  take  them 
with  him ;  it  meant  enduring  great  hardships  because 
of  the  difficulties  of  travel;  it  meant  facing  great 
dangers  from  unfriendly  tribes  and  from  wild  beasts. 
But  Livingstone  did  not  hesitate ;  he  would  sacrifice 
all  and  give  his  life  for  Africa  in  an  effort  to  open  it  up 
for  the  gospel.  Someone  must  blaze  a  way  from  the 
interior  to  the  coast,  and  find  out  by  what  route 
Christianity  could  be  introduced  and  trade  carried  on. 
To  solve  this  problem  Livingstone  now  devoted  his 
life. 

The  decision  having  been  made,  he  journeyed  to 
Cape  Town  with  his  family,  a  distance  of  fifteen  hun- 
dred miles.  Here  they  parted,  not  to  meet  again  for 
nearly  five  years.  Retracing  his  steps,  Livingstone 
traveled  back  north  to  Linyanti,  a  town  of  the 
Makololo  tribe,  some  two  hundred  miles  north  of  the 
Kalahari  Desert.  From  this  point  he  decided  to 
strike  out  for  the  west  coast.  With  twenty-seven 
followers  he  began  the  trip,  and  after  meeting  every 
sort  of  difficulty,  and  having  had  more  than  thirty 
attacks  of  fever,  he  reached  the  shores  of  the  Atlantic 
on  May  31,  1854,  almost  exhausted.     While  on  his 

59 


way,  three  hundred  miles  from  the  coast,  he  passed 
through  a  Portuguese  settlement  where  he  secured  food 
and  rest.  So  weak  was  he  from  sickness  and  lack  of 
nourishment  that  he  ate  like  one  almost  starved. 
When  the  meal  was  over,  he  could  hardly  keep  himself 
from  taking  more  food  from  the  table  to  eat  in  the 
privacy  of  his  own  room. 

Across  the  Continent. 

Although  he  had  been  thirteen  years  in  Africa,  and 
was  utterly  worn  out  by  the  great  journey  just  finished, 
Livingstone  refused  to  return  to  England  because  of 
a  promise  made  to  his  Makololo  followers  that,  if  they 
would  go  with  him  to  the  coast,  he  would  return  with 
them  to  their  home.  After  a  brief  rest,  he  resolutely 
set  his  face  once  more  toward  the  interior,  and  after 
an  absence  of  nearly  two  years,  Livingstone  and  his 
twenty-seven  men  arrived  in  Linyanti.  Great  was 
the  joy  upon  their  return,  for  thev  had  been  given  up 
for  dead. 

It  was  not  long  before  Livingstone  was  again  on  his 
way,  this  time  to  the  east  coast,  which  he  reached  in 
May,  1856.  On  the  way  he  discovered  Victoria  Falls, 
which  he  so  named  in  honor  of  Queen  Victoria.  He 
also  passed  through  a  section  of  country  which  was 
very  healthful  and  free  from  fever,  and  which  he  hoped 
would  prove  a  good  location  for  a  mission  station. 

From  the  east  coast  he  set  sail  for  England,  and 
was  greeted  as  a  great  discoverer.  Sixteen  years 
before,  when  he  left  home,  he  was  hardly  known. 
Now  his  name  was  on  the  lips  of  everyone.  But 
Livingstone  cared  little  for  the  honors  that  were 
shown  him. 

60 


Second  Expedition. 

■  He  remained  in  England  two  years,  and  then 
returned  to  Africa,  at  the  head  of  a  Government  expedi- 
tion to  make  further  explorations  in  the  region  of  the 
Zambesi  river.  On  this  expedition  he  discovered 
Lakes  Shiwra  and  Nyassa. 

Third  Expedition. 

After  another  visit  to  England,  he  was  again  in 
Africa   in   1866,   seeking  this  time  to   discover  the 
sources  of  the  river  Nile.      Years  passed  by,  and  the 
outside  world  had  heard  nothing  from  him,  as  many 
of  his  letters  had  been  lost  or  destroyed  by  unfriendly 
traders.     Many  thought  that  he  was  dead,  but  there 
was  one  man  who  believed  that,  somewhere  m  the 
Dark  Continent,  David  Livingstone  was  still  alive, 
and   he   resolved   to    make   an    effort   to    find  him. 
This    man    was    Mr.    James    Gordon    Bennett,    of 
the  New  York  Herald.     Calling  Henry  M.  Stanley, 
one    of   the   correspondents    of   the   Herald     to   see 
him  in  Paris,  he  told  him  to  make  his  own  plans, 
spare  no  expense,  but  to  find  Livingstone.     Was  it  not 
a  difficult  task  to  try  to  find  one  man  in  the  vast 
continent  of  Africa?      However,  Stanley  in  due  time 
set  out,  and  having  secured  a  number  of  natives, 
started  from  the  east  coast   for  the  interior.     After 
many  weeks'  travel,  one  day  he  met  some  natives  who 
could  speak  English.      Very  anxiously  he  asked  for 
Livingstone,   and  was  overjoyed  to  learn  that  the 
great  missionary  was  near  at  hand.     They  soon  met, 
and  Stanley  approached  him  and  said:     "I  thank 
God,   Doctor,   I   have  been  permitted  to  see  you." 

61 


Livingstone  replied :  "I  feel  thankful  that  I  am  here 
to  welcome  you." 

Stanley  tried  to  persuade  Livingstone  to  return  to 
England  with  him,  but  the  heroic  missionary  would 
not  consent  to  do  so  while  his  work  of  discovering 
the  sources  of  the  Nile  was  yet  undone.  For  four 
months  these  two  men  were  together,  and  Stanley 
tells  what  a  deep  impression  Livingstone  made  upon 
him.  The  time  for  parting  came,  Stanley  to  return 
to  England  to  tell  the  world  that  he  had  found  the 
great  explorer;  Livingstone  to  go  back  to  the  depths 
of  the  African  forest,  never  to  return  or  to  see  again 
the  face  of  a  white  man. 

Just  after  Stanley  left  him,  on  his  birthday,  a  year 
before  he  died,  Livingstone  wrote  in  his  diary:  '  *  My 
Jesus,  my  King,  my  Life,  my  All!  I  again  dedicate 
my  whole  self  to  Thee.  Accept  me,  and  grant,  O 
Gracious  Father,  that  ere  this  year  is  gone  I  may 
finish  my  task.     In  Jesus'  name  I  ask  it.     Amen." 

On  May  4,  1873,  in  a  rude  hut  on  the  shores  of  Lake 
Bangweolo,  his  servants  found  him  dead.  He  was  on 
his  knees.  His  followers  were  heart-broken.  They 
longed  to  show  their  devotion  to  him  who  had  devoted 
his  life  to  them.  They  decided,  therefore,  to  carry 
his  body  to  the  coast.  It  was  a  tedious  and  danger- 
ous journey,  but  was  at  last  accomplished.  The 
remains  were  then  taken  to  England,  and  on  April  18, 
1874,  were  buried  with  highest  honors  in  Westminster 
Abbey. 

Questions. 

1.  When  and  where  was  David  Livingstone  born? 

2.  Why  did  he  go  to  Africa? 

62 


3-    Tell  about  his  encounter  with  a  lion. 

4.  Why  did  Livingstone  become    a   missionary  ex- 

plorer ? 

5.  What  did  he  aim  to  do  for  Africa? 

6.  Mention  his  chief  discoveries. 

7.  Why  would  Livingstone  not  return  to  England 

with  Stanley? 

Books  for  Scholars. 

"The  Life  of  David  Livingstone,"  by  Mrs.  J.  H. 
Worcester,  Jr. 

"David  Livingstone,"  by  T.  Banks  MacLachlan. 

"David  Livingstone,"  by  Thomas  Hughes. 

"Great  Missionaries  of  the  Church,"  by  Creegan, 
Chapter  23. 

"Picket  Line  of  Missions,"  Chapter  i. 

Books  for  Teachers  before  Teaching  this  Study. 

Those  mentioned  above. 

"The  Personal  Life  of  David  Livingstone,"  W.  G. 
Blaikie. 


63' 


STUDY  IX. 

GREAT  MISSIONARIES  IN  THE  DARK 
CONTINENT. 

Hleianber  fiD.  fiDacftai?, 

1849-1890. 

•ffnOustrfal  /fttesfonarg  in  Central  Bast  Btrlca. 

In  our  studies  about  Africa  we  have  met  so  far 
three  great  missionaries :  Robert  Moffat,  who  trans- 
lated the  Bible  for  the  tribes  of  the  South,  and  who 
was  the  means  of  leading  the  great  robber  chief,  Afri- 
kaner, to  know  Jesus  Christ;  Samuel  Adjai  Crowther, 
the  little  native  boy  who  was  rescued  from  the  slave- 
ship,  and  who  afterwards  became  the  Bishop  of  West 
Africa,  and  David  Livingstone,  the  missionary  physi- 
cian and  great  explorer,  who  opened  up  the  Dark 
Continent  as  had  never  been  done  before  to  the  civ- 
ilized world.  To-day,  we  are  to  study  about  another 
great  missionary  who  was  not  a  minister,  but  a  civil 
engineer,  Alexander  M.  Mackay.  Stanley,  the  famous 
traveler  and  explorer,  said  of  him  that  next  to  Living- 
stone he  was  the  greatest  missionary  he  had  ever  met. 

Early  Life  and  Influences. 

Like  Livingstone  and  Moffat,  he  was  born  in  Scot- 
land, from   which   highland  country  has  come  many 

64 


a  good  missionary.  It  was  on  the  13th  of  October, 
1849,  that  the  father  of  Alexander  Mackay,  who  was 
the  village  minister  at  Rhynie,  was  studying  a  map 
of  Africa.  There  was  a  knock  at  the  door^  and  quietly 
the  old  family  servant,  Annie,  slipped  into  the  room. 
Without  noticing  her  particularly,  he  said :  "Annie, 
do  you  see  this  pear-shaped  Continent?  The  gospel 
banner  will  yet  be  planted  in  the  very  heart  of  this 
Continent,  although  not  likely  in  your  day  or  mine." 
"But  it  may  be  in  your  son's,  sir,  and  who  will  say 
he  may  not  have  a  hand  in  it?"  Little  did  she  know 
then  that  the  baby  she  held  in  her  arms  would  indeed 
become  a  missionary  to  Africa. 

Early  Days. 

As  time  passed  by,  the  baby  grew  and  early  showed 
that  he  was  very  bright.  When  he  was  but  four 
years  old  a  new  church  was  being  built  next  to  the 
manse,  and  the  little  lad  was  a  great  favorite  with 
the  workmen,  as  he  wanted  to  help.  "Well,  laddie, 
are  you  going  to  give  us  a  sermon  to-day?"  they 
would  ask  him,  and  his  reply  would  always  be :  "Please 
give  me  trowel ;  can  preach  and  build  same  time." 
When  he  was  four  he  could  read  the  tenth  chapter  of 
Nehemiah  and  pronounce  correctly  all  of  the  hard 
names  in  it.  He  and  his  father  were  great  chums,  and 
many  a  time  they  would  go  oflf  together  on  a  long 
tramp  in  the  country,  and  little  Alexander  was  always 
eager  to  learn  all  that  he  could.  Sometimes  an  after- 
noon would  be  spent  in  the  quarry,  and  Mr.  Mackay 
would  teach  his  son  about  the  rocks,  and  at  night 
would  tell  him  about  the  stars.     His  mother,  too,  he 

65 


dearly  loved,  and  it  was  his  great  delight  to  look 
forward  to  Sunday  evenings  when,  after  repeating  his 
Bible  lesson  and  Shorter  Catechism,  she  would  tell 
him  as  a  reward  a  missionary  story.  When  she  was 
but  a  little  girl  she  had  heard  a  missionary  sermon 
which  had  touched  her  heart  very  deeply,  and  she 
longed  to  do  something  for  the  cause.  In  after  years 
h€r  own  little  boy  hung  upon  her  words  as  she  told  him 
of  Henry  Martyn,  and  of  many  another  missionary. 
"Would  you  like  me  to  become  a  missionary  and  go 
to  Africa?"  be  asked  her.  *'If  God  prepares  you  for 
it,  my  boy,  but  not  unless." 

How   He  Became  a   Missionary. 

Both  his  mother  and  his  father  hoped  that  he  would 
become  a  minister,  but  Alexander's  tastes  were  for 
engineering.  He  studied  in  Edinburgh,  and  then  in 
Berlin,  where  he  secured  an  excellent  position.  It 
was  while  h^re  that  his  sister  in  Edinburgh  wrote  to 
him  about  an  address  which  had  been  made  by  a  mis- 
sionary from  Madagascar.  Mackay  was  so  much 
interested  in  it  that  he  offered  to  go  as  a  missionary, 
but  the  way  did  not  seem  to  open  just  then  to  go  to 
this  island  off  the  African  coast.  God  was  preparing 
him  to  go  to  the  Dark  Continent  itself.  Would  you 
like  to  know  how  it  came  about  that  he  went  ? 

Some  months  had  passed  by  since  he  had  learned  that 
there  was  no  chance  to  go  to  Madagascar.  One  even- 
ing he  was  reading  Stanley's  book,  "How  I  Found 
Livingstone."  It  told  how  Mtesa,  King  of  Uganda, 
wanted  white  men  to  be  sent  as  missionaries  to  his 
people.     It  was  a  challenge  to  the   Church.     After 

66 


reading  it,  Mackay  noticed  a  newspaper  lying  upon 
the  table,  and  the  name  of  the  Secretary  of  the  Church 
Missionary  Society  printed  at  the  close  of  an  article. 
He  was  interested  to  see  what  is  was  about,  so  he 
picked  up  the  paper,  and  read  an  appeal  for  mis- 
sionaries to  go  to  Uganda  to  a  new  mission  station 
which  the  Church  Missionary  Society  wished  to  found 
there.  Although  it  was  past  midnight,  he  at  once 
wrote  a  letter  offering  his  services.  He  was  accepted, 
and  in  a  few  weeks  later  was  on  his  way  to  the  field. 
This  was  in  1876,  when  he  was  twenty-seven  years  old. 

Uganda  and  Its  People. 

Let  us  see  where  he  was  going.  Uganda  is  a 
country  of  about  70,000  square  miles,  lying  just  south 
of  the  Equator  in  Central  East  Africa,  and  its  shores 
border  the  great  lake,  Victoria  Nyanza.  The  people 
who  live  there  are  Negroes,  and  Mackay  speaks  of 
them  as  brighter  and  more  advanced  than  any  other 
natives  he  had  seen  in  Africa.  They  were  very  super- 
stitious, though,  believing  in  ghosts,  of  which  they 
were  very  much  afraid.  After  landing  upon  the  east 
coast  of  the  Dark  Continent,  Mackay  at  first  tried  to 
find  out  if  he  could  reach  Uganda  by  sailing  up  some 
of  the  rivers  that  came  down  from  the  interior,  but  he 
soon  found  that  this  could  not  be  done.  The  only  way 
was  overland.  This  was  a  journey  of  several  hundred 
miles  through  jungle  and  swamp  and  forest.  He  met 
great  difficulties  by  the  way,  and  several  times  was 
very  near  to  death  from  the  dreaded  African  fever. 
He  caused  much  wonder  among  the  tribes  through 
which  he  passed.     Their  curiosity  was  at  times  very 

67 


amusing,  for  some  of  them  thought,  until  they  saw  his 
boot  taken  off,  that  it  was  a  part  of  his  foot,  so  strange 
and  marvelous  was  the  white  man.  All  of  the  wonder- 
ful things  that  Mackay  did  they  thought  were  done 
by  witchcraft. 

Reaches  Uganda. 

Finally,  after  two  years,  Mackay  reached  Uganda 
in  November,  1878,  and  was  cordially  welcomed  by 
Mtesa,  the  king.  We  have  said  that  he  was  not  a 
minister,  but  an  engineer.  He  had  great  skill  as 
an  ironworker,  and  his  blacksmith  shop,  which  he 
soon  set  up,  was  a  continual  source  of  wonder  to  the 
natives.  They  would  com^e  in  crowds  to  watch  him  at 
work,  and  his  bellows  and  grindstone  excited  great 
interest.  He  made  a  magic  lantern  out  of  an  old 
box  and  som.e  biscuit  tins,  and  delighted  Mtesa  and 
his  subjects  with  the  pictures  that  he  showed  them. 
His  chief  purpose,  however,  in  going  all  the  way  from 
Scotland  to  far  away  Africa  and  enduring  so  many 
hardships,  was  to  tell  the  story  of  Jesus  to  the  people 
of  Uganda. 

Mtesa. 

At  first  the  king  showed  a  good  deal  of  interest,  and 
Mackay  held  many  services  at  court  teaching  the  peo- 
ple about  God  and  Christ.  It  was  not  long,  however, 
before  some  French  Roman  Catholic  priests  appeared, 
and  they  began  to  hinder  Mackay's  work.  Arab  slave 
dealers  also  opposed  him,  because  they  knew  that  he 
would  do  all  that  he  could  to  put  down  the  awful  slave 
trade.      Difficulties    and   troubles   then   began   to   in- 

68 


crease.  Mtesa  fell  sick,  and  though  he  had  been  told 
by  Mackay  the  wickedness  of  it,  a  sorcerer  was  called 
in  who  was  supposed  to  be  able  to  drive  away  the 
disease.  But  he  was  quite  unable  to  do  anything. 
Orders  were  then  given  for  a  ''Kiwendo,"  which 
meant  the  killing  of  scores  of  innocent  people,  who 
were  attacked  on  the  roads  and  slain  in  cold  blood,  or 
captured  and  kept  for  a  few  days  when  all  would  be 
killed  together. 

MWANGA. 

Finally  Mtesa  died,  and  his  son,  Mwanga,  a  young 
man  of  seventeen,  came  to  the  throne.  He  was  a  weak 
nature,  and  soon  shov/ed  his  opposition  to  Christianity. 
Two  young  boys  who  had  become  Christians  were 
caught  and  burned  to  death,  and  thus  began  a  most 
bitter  persecution.  But  the  persecution  only  increased 
the  number  of  those  who  wished  to  be  baptized  and  to 
confess  Christ.  Mackay's  faithful  teaching  and  his 
translation  of  parts  of  the  Bible  were  bearing  fruit. 
As  time  went  on,  Mwanga  became  more  and  more 
cruel,  and  hundreds  of  Christians  perished.  Mackay 
was  in  great  danger.  Time  and  again  it  was  planned 
to  kill  him,  but  God  mercifully  kept  him.  Finally 
he  made  up  his  mind  that  his  being  at  Mwanga's  cap- 
ital simply  continued  to  stir  up  opposition,  and  as  the 
Arabs  seemed  to  be  especially  bitter  against  him  per- 
sonally, it  would  be  better,  for  a  time  at  least,  to 
leave.  He  went  to  the  south  shore  of  Lake  Nyanza, 
where  he  estabhshed  another  mission  station  at  a  place 
called  Usambiro.  Here  he  spent  much  time  in  the 
translation  and  printing  of  portions  of  the  Scriptures. 

69 


It  was  while  here  that  he  met  Stanley,  who  urged  him 
to  return  to  England,  but  with  the  spirit  of  a  hero's 
devotion  to  duty,  he  refused  to  do  so  until  some  one 
should  be  sent  to  take  his  place.  He  had  been  four- 
teen years  in  Africa  without  a  furlough,  and  he 
greatly  needed  the  rest  and  change.  But  his  life  was 
almost  run,  and  on  one  February  morning,  1890,  he 
died  after  four  days'  illness  from  African  fever. 

Uganda  To-Day. 

Should  you  go  to  Uganda  to-day  you  would  not 
have  to  endure  all  the  trials  Mackay  met  or  brave  such 
dangers.  You  could  go  in  a  railway  train  from  the 
East  Coast.  You  would  not  find  the  heathenism 
as  widespread  as  in  Mackay's  day,  but  you  would  find 
scores  of  Christian  churches  supported  by  the  natives 
themselves,  and  in  any  one  of  them  you  would  be  as 
welcome  as  in  a  church  here  in  America.  The  reason 
of  it  is  because  Mackay  and  other  devoted  mission- 
aries have  given  their  lives  to  Africa,  to  tell  those 
sitting  in  darkness  of  the  light  that  has  shined  for 
them  as  well  as  for  us. 

Questions. 

1.  X)o  all  missionaries  have  to  be  ministers? 

2.  Did  Mackay  show  any  particular  interest  in  Mis- 

sions as  a  boy?     If  so,  what? 

3.  What  led  him  to  decide  to  become  a  missionary? 

4.  What  sort  of  people  did  he  work  among  in  Uganda  ? 

5.  Do  you  think  Mtesa  was  a  Christian? 

6.  Did  persecution  stamp  out  the  Church? 

7.  What  showed  that  Mackay  was  a  true  hero? 

70 


Books  for  Scholars. 
"The  Story  of  Mackay  of  Uganda,"  by  His  Sister. 

Books  for  Teachers  before  Teaching  this  Study. 

"Mackay  of  Uganda." 

"The  Story  of  Mackay  of  Uganda." 

"Two  Kings  of  Uganda." 

"The  Price  of  Africa"  (Chap.  IV). 


71 


STUDY  X. 

GREAT  MISSIONARIES  IN  THE  DARK 
CONTINENT. 

Hfrica,  Zo^^n^. 

A  Glance  at  Africa. 

You  have  probably  all  seen  a  kaleidoscope,  and 
know  how  with  every  turn  of  a  little  handle  or 
crank  at  the  side  a  new  picture  appears.  You  have 
thought  it  great  fun,  perhaps,  to  see  rivers,  meadows, 
mountains  and  forests  pass  quickly  before  your  eyes. 
Let  us  pretend  to  put  Africa  into  a  kaleidoscope,  and 
turning  form  one  picture  to  another,  see  the  changes 
that  have  been  made  there  in  the  last  century. 

First,  let  us  see  the  difference  with  regard  to  travel. 

When  Moffat  entered  Cape  Town  the  outline  of 
the  Dark  Continent  was  known,  and  some  of  the  coast 
towns  had  been  visited  by  travelers  and  traders.  From 
the  Cape  men  had  been  known  to  travel  as  far  as  six 
hundred  miles  north.  But  this  was  all.  Africa  was 
still  a  locked  secret  to  the  world. 

Turn  to  picture  two.  Fifty-six  years  have  passed. 
Moffat  is  an  old  man,  and  David  Livingstone,  far  from 
any  white  man,  has  just  died,  having  traveled  29,000 
miles  and  having  added  1,000,000  square  miles,  one- 
twelfth  of  the  area  of  Africa,  to  the  known  regions  of 

72 


the  globe.  The  great  lakes,  too,  of  Central  Africa, 
considerably  larger  than  what  we  know  as  the  Great 
Lakes  of  the  United  States,  have  also  been  discovered. 

Upon  the  death  of  Livingstone  all  England  was 
stirred.  His  appeal  for  the  Dark  Continent  was  read 
everywhere.  Stanley  added  to  the  interest  of  the 
people  by  writing  a  book,  entitled  "How  I  Found 
Livingstone."  Not  only  was  the  Church  interested, 
but  merchants  wanted  to  visit  this  newly  opened  con- 
tinent, and  plans  were  made  to  construct  railroads. 
They  would  make  travel  safer,  and  in  addition  to  this 
would  put  money  in  the  pocket  of  the  companies  build- 
ing them.  To-day  there  are  thousands  of  miles  of 
railroad  in  Africa,  the  longest  stretch  being  from 
Mombasa  on  the  east  coast  to  Lake  Victoria  Nyanza, 
a  distance  of  five  hundred  and  eighty-two  miles.  But 
a  much  longer  one  is  now  being  built  between  Cape 
Town  and  Cairo,  which  will  reach  from  one  end  of  the 
continent  to  the  other.  If  you  should  go  to  Africa 
to-day,  you  could  see  from  the  railroad  bridge  over  the 
Zambesi  River  the  Victoria  Falls,  which  are  grander 
than  Niagara. 

One  more  turn,  and  the  picture  is  a  scene  of  only 
ten  years  ago.  The  country  is  Central  Africa.  A  soli- 
tary missionary  is  walking  to  his  station  accompanied 
by  natives.  He  has  a  90  days'  journey  of  350  miles 
before  him  through  jungle  and  forest.  This  man  is 
Willis  R.  Hotchkiss,  one  of  the  bravest  and  best  mis- 
sionaries ever  in  the  Dark  Continent.  To-day  this 
same  journey  can  be  made  by  train  in  twenty-four 
hours. 

Once,  the  only  way  to  travel,  unless    you    should 

73 


go  on  foot,  was  in  a  hammock  swung  between  two 
poles,  and  this  was  somewhat  dangerous,  for  if  your 
carriers  saw  a  wild  animal  they  would  drop  you  in 
the  road  and  run  for  their  lives.  Not  only  this,  but 
in  passing  through  marshes,  you  were  always  in  more 
or  less  langer  of  being  dumped  out  if  your  carriers 
slipped  on  the  sHmy  grasses.  To-day,  there  are  trol- 
leys on  the  coast,  and  trains  run  through  what,  in  the 
days  of  Stanley,  was  unknown  territory. 

From  the  place  let  us  turn  to  the  people.  One  hun- 
dred years  ago  a  naked  savage,  or  at  best  a  half- 
clothed  African,  fleeing  from  the  white  man  in  terror 
lest  he  be  captured  for  a  slave.    This  is  picture  four. 

Five  shows  us  the  native  to-day.  He  is  clothed, 
and  instead  of  running  from  the  white  man,  he  rushes 
to  him,  finding  in  him,  especially  in  the  missionary,  his 
best  friend. 

Twenty-five  years  ago  Great  Britain  and  the  Euro- 
pean powers  did  not  place  much  value  on  Africa.  The 
natives  were  poor,  and  the  country  was  supposed  to 
be  like  them,  also  poor.  But  this,  it  was  learned,  was 
not  true.  Tales  began  to  be  whispered  here  and  there 
of  rich  mines  in  South  Africa.  Especially  was  there 
a  persistent  rumor  of  the  wealth  of  certain  mines  in 
the  Orange  Colony,  which  is  in  the  south.  When 
Europe  and  England  heard  this,  and,  after  looking 
into  the  matter,  thought  it  to  be  true,  they  wanted 
a  share  in  this  suspected  wealth.  Then  began  what  is 
now  known  as  the  "Scramble  for  Africa."  Through 
this  "Scramble"  ten  million  square  miles  were  divided 
among  the  Powers,  leaving  only  one  and  a  half  million 
miles  free  from  foreign  rule.   This  was  in  1884.   Since 

74 


then  one  million  more  square  miles  have  been  snatched 
away  from  the  natives,  who  rule  to-day  only  five  hun- 
dred thousand  of  their  eleven  and  a  half  million  square 
miles  of  territory. 

The  stories  told  of  the  wealth  of  certain  parts  of 
Africa  were  true,  and  in  picture  six  you  may  see 
white  men  coming  from  the  four  corners  of  the  earth, 
seekers  after  gold.  At  their  side,  as  they  guard  their 
special  section  of  the  mines,  black  men  are  working 
to  make  the  white  men  rich  with  the  very  gold  that 
should  by  rights  belong  to  the  natives. 

The  Kimberley  diamond  mines  have  yielded  in  less 
than  twenty  years  $350,000,000  worth  of  diamonds, 
and  Johannesburg,  which  lies  about  two  hundred  miles 
north  of  Kimberley,  has  yielded  for  many  years  an- 
nually gold  to  the  value  of  $50,000,000.  Johannesburg 
is  the  most  modern  of  Africa's  cities.  It  boasts  of 
buildings  fourteen  stories  high.  These  were,  of  course, 
built  by  white  men.  A  change  as  to  accessible  ter- 
ritory, a  change  in  the  way  of  traveling,  a  change  in 
the  feeling  of  the  natives  towards  the  white  man,  and 
a  change  in  the  mind  of  the  world  with  regard  to 
the  value  of  Africa  are  four  prominent  things  that 
go  to  make  "Africa  To-day"  different  from  the  Africa 
of  a  hundred,  of  twenty-five,  yes,  even  of  fifteen  years 
ago.  You  have  yet  to  hear  of  the  greatest  change, 
and  because  it  is  the  best  change,  I  have  kept  it  until 
the  last.  This  change  not  only  affects  Africa,  but 
every  nation  having  dealings  in  the  Dark  Continent  is 
better  for  it. 

The  change  has  come  because  of  the  Christian  mis- 
sionary, because  of  the  little  native  churches  scattered 

75 


in  many  parts  of  the  Dark  Continent,  because  of  the 
Christian  schools  where  hundreds  of  boys  and  girls 
gather  morning  by  morning  to  learn  to  read.  Before 
the  days  of  Moffat  there  was  not  a  single  school  for 
pagan  Africans.  The  Mohammedan  children  were 
taught  to  read — that  is,  the  boys  were,  but  the  girls 
must  never  learn.  This  was  long  ago.  To-day  the 
children  are  eager,  and  the  parents  are  generally  glad 
to  have  them  learn  to  ''make  the  letters  talk."  School 
in  Africa  is  very  strange  in  many  ways,  the  queerest 
thing  being  the  varying  ages  of  the  pupils.  The 
youngest  scholars  are  about  six  years  old,  and  the 
oldest  ?  Qh,  anywhere  up  to  eighty !  Can  you  imagine 
yourself  studying  in  the  same  class  with  your  grand- 
mother? It  would  be  strange,  indeed,  here,  but  it 
is  so  common  in  the  Dark  Continent  that  the  children 
think  nothing  of  it,  and  vie  with  their  elders  for  the 
neatest  copy  books,  and  the  greatest  number  of  verses 
memorized.  One  of  the  chief  text-books  in  most  of 
these  Mission  Schools  is  the  Bible,  or  a  primer  having 
simple  Bible  verses.  No  one  can  study  for  long  in 
the  Mission  Schools  and  not  gain  a  very  fair  idea  of 
what  Christianity  is,  and  what  a  Christian  should  be. 

Do  not  think  that  there  are  schools  all  through 
A.frica.  There  are  not,  by  any  means.  In  the  Soudan 
and  in  the  Sahara  there  is  only  one  missionary,  and 
there  are  nearly  fifty  million  people  living  there.  Once 
in  a  great  while  a  scholar  comes,  generally  on  foot  all 
the  way  from  these  unevangelized  parts,  and  asks  to 
be  admitted  to  the  Mission  Schools.  The  missionaries 
always  try  to  make  room  for  such  scholars,  for  when 
they  return  home  during  vacation  they  will  tell  what 

76 


they  have  learned,  and  the  people  often  become  so 
interested  through  the  story  that  they  ask  to  have  a 
teacher  sent  them.  Alas !  the  missionary  has  generally 
to  say  "No,"  for  there  are  not  nearly  enough  mis- 
sionaries to  do  the  work.  But  the  one  who  is  there 
can  visit  their  towns  when  on  his  preaching  tours,  and 
hold  services.  Just  think  of  it !  In  an  area  larger 
than  the  New  England  States,  there  are  only  four 
missionaries  at  work. 

One  way  children  are  brought  into  the  school  and 
Sunday  School  is  by  means  of  the  Mission  Boat. 
These  boats,  of  which  there  are  half  a  dozen,  travel  up 
and  down  the  rivers.  The  children  of  the  villages  come 
out  to  see  them,  and  are  usually  very  glad  if  they  can 
go  back  on  them  to  school.  Travelling  in  some  of  the 
far  away  parts  of  Africa,  you  may  meet  some  of  the 
girls  and  boys  who  have  been  on  board  the  mission 
boats,  and  who  have  been  to  school. 

Africans   Need  of  Christ. 

Have  you  ever  been  afraid  when  you  are  alone  at 
night,  and  the  light  was  put  out?  If  you  were,  you 
will  surely  feel  sorry  for  the  African  boys  and  girls 
when  you  hear  that  they  are  afraid  most  of  the  time. 
Afraid  of  the  wind  moving  in  the  trees.  They  call 
the  noise  of  the  rustling  leaves,  bad  spirits  which  they 
think  will  harm  them.  Perhaps  you  think  that  this  is 
foolish,  but  it  really  is  not  to  them,  for  they  are  taught 
to  beHeve  it,  and  the  grown  people  are  as  afraid  as 
the  children.  Don't  you  want  to  help  these  boys 
and  girls?  Surely  your  answer  is,  "Yes."  If  you 
do  help    them,  you    may    feel  that    you    are   helping 

77 


Jesus,  not  only  little  Africans,  for  He  said,  "Inasmuch 
as  ye  have  done  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these,  My 
brethren,  ye  have  done  it  unto  Me."  Nothing  can 
make  you  happier  in  this  world  than  bringing  joy  into 
the  lives  of  some  other  girls  or  boys  for  whom  Christ 
died.  Let  us  pray  for  the  children  of  Africa,  and  help 
answer  our  prayers  by  giving  what  we  can  to  send  the 
Gospel  message  to  them.  Then  perhaps  some  day 
some  of  us  may  ourselves  go  and  tell  them  what  Jesus 
is  to  us,  and  what  He  will  be  to  them. 

Questions. 

1.  How  does  travel  to-day  in  Africa  differ  from  that 

of  a  century  ago? 

2.  Is  Africa  a  good  place  to  make  a  fortune?    When? 

3.  If  you  should  go  to  school  in  Africa,  what  differ- 

ences from  your  own  would  you  notice? 

4.  What  shows  that  the  Africans  still  need  the  Gospel  ? 

Interesting  Books  for  Scholars. 

"A  Trip  on  the  Dorothy,"  leaflet  by  Dr.  Halsey. 
"Africa    for    Juniors,"    by    Katherine    C.    Crowell 
(Chap.  6). 

Books  for  Teachers  before  Teaching  this  Study. 

"Dawn  in  the  Dark  Continent,"  by  James  Stewart, 
D.  D. 

"Partition  of  Africa,"  by  Keltic. 


78 


Significant    Resolutions 

PASSED    BY 

The    Editorial  Association 


IN    CONNECTION    WITH 

THE  TORONTO  CONVENTION,    I905 

OF  THE 

International  Sunday  School 
Association 


(i)  That  the  Sunday  School  papers  of  the  country  bring 
before  the  attention  of  the  Christian  pubhc  the  great  field  of 
Sunday  School  work  as  the  natural  and  logical  place  for 
instruction  in  Home  and  Foreign  Missions. 

(2)  That  the  question  of  Missions  in  the  Sunday  School 
be  given  a  place  on  the  programs  of  all  missionary  institutes, 
conventions  and  summer  schools  wherever  possible  through- 
out the  country. 

(3)  That  the  aid  of  the  Sunday  School  Boards  and  the 
societies  of  the  various  denominations  be  enlisted  in  a  sys- 
tematic effort  to  bring  before  every  Sunday  School  superin- 
tendent in  the  country  the  possibility,  practicability  and 
necessity  of  the  study  of  Missions  in  the  Sunday  Schools. 

(4)  That  courses  of  instruction  be  prepared  in  both  Home 
and  Foreign  Missions,  aimed  to  instruct  and  interest  the 
scholars,  and  to  lead  them  to  some  definite  missionary 
activity. 

(5)  That  this  missionary  instruction  be  made  a  part  of  the 
regular  supplemental  work  in  every  School,  unless  otherwise 
adequately  provided  for. 

(6)  That  suitable  and  inexpensive  books  be  prepared  in 
different  grades,  which  shall  be  put  in  the  hands  of  every 
pupil,  so  that  thorough  home  preparation  be  made  possible. 


79 


Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Libraries 


1    1012  01234  4117 


rkTCTTT'D       A1TAIT    ATlTTn       T»/ 


DATE  DUE 


•iinational  mission 
;hool 

FOR  THE 

lULL 

Qday  Schools.  64  pp. 


t. 
:s. 

RICA. 

Mew  Hebrides. 
niNA. 


evangelistic  and  mis- 
Bpening  this  force,  the 
ful  heed  to  Mr.  Trull's 
;  they  are  among  the 
r  educating  and  inter- 
prise  of  Missions." 

Library,   156  Fifth 

postpaid.     Twenty 
:pressage  extra. 


FOU  THE 

Trull 


GAYLORD 


#3523PI       Printed  in  USA 


NDIANS. 
ORIGANS. 

School.      100  PP. 

or  more  copies,  10 

either    Board    of 
ue,  New  York  City. 

J^S- These  books  are  WHOLLY  UNDENOMINATIONAL  in  character 
and  treatment,  and  are  therefore  adapted  for  use  in  any  School.  They  do 
not  present  denominational  Missions,  but  the  world-wide  work  with  which 
every  Christian  should  be  familiar. 


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